Heterologous expression of Bartonella adhesin A in Escherichia coli by exchange of trimeric autotransporter adhesin domains results in enhanced adhesion properties and a pathogenic phenotype.

Human-pathogenic Bartonella henselae causes cat scratch disease and vasculoproliferative disorders. An important pathogenicity factor of B. henselae is the trimeric autotransporter adhesin (TAA) Bartonella adhesin A (BadA), which is modularly constructed, consisting of a head, a long and repetitive neck-stalk module, and a membrane anchor.

Adhesins of Bartonella spp.

Adhesion to host cells represents the first step in the infection process and one of the decisive features in the pathogenicity of Bartonella spp. B. henselae and B.