Microscopic Analysis of the Chlamydia abortus Inclusion and Its Interaction with Those Formed by Other Chlamydial Species.

The Chlamydiae are obligate intracellular pathogens that develop and multiply within a poorly characterized parasitophorous vacuole (the inclusion) during growth. Chlamydia abortus is a major pathogen of sheep and other ruminants, and its inclusion development is poorly characterized. We used immunofluorescence microscopy, quantitative culture, and qPCR to examine C.

A broad-spectrum cloning vector that exists as both an integrated element and a free plasmid in Chlamydia trachomatis.

Plasmid transformation of chlamydiae has created new opportunities to investigate host-microbe interactions during chlamydial infections; however, there are still limitations. Plasmid transformation requires a replicon derived from the native Chlamydia plasmid, and these transformations are species-specific. We explored the utility of a broad host-range plasmid, pBBR1MCS-4, to transform chlamydiae, with a goal of simplifying the transformation process.

Estradiol-Treated Female Mice as Surrogate Hosts for Neisseria gonorrhoeae Genital Tract Infections.

Historically, animal modeling of gonorrhea has been hampered by the exclusive adaptation of Neisseria gonorrhoeae to humans. Genital tract infection can be established in female mice that are treated with 17β-estradiol, however, and many features of experimental murine infection mimic human infection. Here we review the colonization kinetics and host response to experimental murine gonococcal infection, including mouse strain differences and evidence that IL-17 responses, toll-like receptor 4, and T regulatory cells play a role in infection.

Phenotypic and genotypic analyses of Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates that express frequently recovered PorB PIA variable region types suggest that certain P1a porin sequences confer a selective advantage for urogenital tract infection.

Typing of the porB variable region (VR) is an epidemiological tool that classifies gonococcal strains based on sequence differences in regions of the porB gene that encode surface-exposed loops. The frequent isolation of certain porB VR types suggests that some porin sequences confer a selective advantage during infection and/or transmission. Alternatively, certain porin types may be markers of strains that are successful due to factors unrelated to porin.