Koehler L, Nettelnbreker E, Hudson A P, Ott N, Gérard H C, Branigan P J, Schumacher H R, Drommer W, Zeidler H
Department of Rheumatology, Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
Microb Pathog. 1997 Mar;22(3):133-42. doi: 10.1006/mpat.1996.0103.
Previous studies have suggested that monocytes may play a role in the dissemination of Chlamydia trachomatis, and in establishment of persistent infection with this bacterium. Infection of cultured human peripheral blood monocytes with C. trachomatis serovar K produced persistent, nonproductive infection. Transmission electron microscopy of such infected cultures revealed single or multiple Chlamydia in monocyte inclusions over a culture period of 10 days. Those inclusions were aberrant, and normal reticulate bodies within the inclusions were not observed. Immunoelectron microscopy showed the chlamydial major outer membrane protein and lipopolysaccharide to be associated with the bacterial plasma membrane. Lipopolysaccharide was also identified in the monocyte cytoplasm. Molecular analyses of primary chlamydial rRNA transcripts demonstrated that the organism is viable and metabolically active within monocyte inclusions. However, attempts to overcome chlamydial growth arrest by incubation of Chlamydia-infected monocytes with tryptophan, and antibodies against alpha interferon, gamma interferon, or tumor necrosis factor, were all ineffective, suggesting that known mechanisms of growth inhibition do not hold in human monocytes. These observations indicate that infection of human peripheral blood monocytes with C. trachomatis may be involved in the genesis/maintenance of extra-urogenital inflammation, since non-culturable, metabolically active bacteria persist in those cells.
先前的研究表明，单核细胞可能在沙眼衣原体的传播以及该细菌持续性感染的建立过程中发挥作用。用人沙眼衣原体血清型K感染培养的人外周血单核细胞会产生持续性的非增殖性感染。对这种感染培养物进行透射电子显微镜检查发现，在长达10天的培养期内，单核细胞包涵体中有单个或多个衣原体。这些包涵体异常，未观察到包涵体内有正常的网状体。免疫电子显微镜显示衣原体主要外膜蛋白和脂多糖与细菌质膜相关。脂多糖也在单核细胞胞质中被鉴定出来。对衣原体初级rRNA转录本的分子分析表明，该生物体在单核细胞包涵体内具有活力且代谢活跃。然而，用色氨酸以及抗α干扰素、γ干扰素或肿瘤坏死因子的抗体孵育感染衣原体的单核细胞，试图克服衣原体生长停滞的尝试均无效，这表明已知的生长抑制机制在人单核细胞中并不适用。这些观察结果表明，人外周血单核细胞被沙眼衣原体感染可能与泌尿生殖系统外炎症的发生/维持有关，因为不可培养但代谢活跃的细菌在这些细胞中持续存在。
