Bacterial Defense against Phagocytosis 2011 Kenneth Todar, PhD Introduction Some pathogenic bacteria are inherently able

e to resist the bactericidal components of host tissues, usually as a function of some structural property. For example, the poly-D-glutamate capsule of Bacillus anthracis protects the organisms against action of cationic proteins (defensins) in sera or in phagocytes. The outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria is a permeability barrier to lysozyme and is not easily penetrated by hydrophobic compounds such as bile salts in the GI tract that are harmful to the bacteria. Pathogenic mycobacteria have a waxy cell wall that resists attack or digestion by most tissue bactericides. And intact lipopolysaccharides (LPS) of Gram-negative pathogens may protect the cells from complement-mediated lysis or the action of lysozyme. Most successful pathogens, however, possess additional structural or biochemical features that allow them to resist the host cellular defense against them, i.e., the phagocytic and immune responses. If a pathogen breaches the host's surface defenses, it must then overcome the host's phagocytic response to succeed in an infection. Ability of Pathogens to Avoid or Overcome Phagocytes Microorganisms invading tissues are first and foremost exposed to phagocytes. Bacteria that readily attract phagocytes and that are easily ingested and killed are generally unsuccessful as pathogens. In contrast, most bacteria that are successful as pathogens interfere to some extent with the activities of phagocytes or in some way avoid their attention. Bacterial pathogens have devised numerous and diverse strategies to avoid phagocytic engulfment and killing. Most are aimed at blocking one or more of the steps in phagocytosis, thereby halting the process. The process of phagocytosis is discussed in the chapter on Innate Immunity against bacterial pathogens. Avoiding Contact with Phagocytes Bacteria can avoid the attention of phagocytes in a number of ways. 1. Pathogens may invade or remain confined in regions inaccessible to phagocytes. Certain internal tissues (e.g. the lumens of glands, the urinary bladder) and surface tissues (e.g. unbroken skin) are not patrolled by phagocytes. 2. Some pathogens are able to avoid provoking an overwhelming inflammatory response. Without inflammation the host is unable to focus the phagocytic defenses. 3. Some bacteria or their products inhibit phagocyte chemotaxis. For example, Streptococcal streptolysin (which also kills phagocytes) suppresses neutrophil chemotaxis, even in very low concentrations. Fractions of Mycobacterium tuberculosis are known to inhibit leukocyte migration. The Clostridium toxin also inhibits neutrophil chemotaxis. 4. Some pathogens can cover the surface of the bacterial cell with a component which is seen as "self" by the host phagocytes and immune system. Such a strategy hides the antigenic surface of the bacterial cell. Phagocytes cannot recognize bacteria upon contact and the possibility of opsonization by antibodies to enhance phagocytosis is minimized. For example, pathogenic Staphylococcus aureus produces cell-bound coagulase and clumping factor which clots fibrin on the bacterial surface. Treponema pallidum, the agent of syphilis, binds fibronectin to its surface. Group A streptococci are able to synthesize a capsule composed of hyaluronic acid. Hyaluronic acid is the ground substance (tissue cement) in connective tissue. Some pathogens have or can deposit sialic acid residues on their surfaces which prevents opsonization by complement components and impedes recognition by phagocytes. Inhibition of Phagocytic Engulfment Some bacteria employ strategies to avoid engulfment (ingestion) if phagocytes do make contact with them. Many important pathogenic bacteria bear on their surfaces substances that inhibit phagocytic adsorption or engulfment. Clearly it is the bacterial surface that matters. Resistance to phagocytic ingestion is usually due to a component of the bacterial cell surface (cell wall, or fimbriae, or a capsule). Classical examples of antiphagocytic substances on bacterial surfaces include: 1. Polysaccharide capsules of S. pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenzae, Treponema pallidum and Klebsiella pneumoniae 2. M protein and fimbriae of Group A streptococci

3. Surface slime (polysaccharide) produced as a biofilm by Pseudomonas aeruginosa 4. O polysaccharide associated with LPS of E. coli 5. K antigen (acidic polysaccharides) of E. coli or the analogous Vi antigen of Salmonella typhi 6. Cell-bound or soluble Protein A produced by Staphylococcus aureus. Protein A attaches to the Fc region of IgG and blocks the cytophilic (cell-binding) domain of the Ab. Thus, the ability of IgG to act as an opsonic factor is inhibited, and opsonin-mediated ingestion of the bacteria is blocked. Survival Inside of Cells Some bacteria survive inside of phagocytes, either neutrophils or macrophages. Bacteria that can resist killing and survive or multiply inside of phagocytes or other cells are considered intracellular parasites. The intracellular environment of a phagocyte may be a protective one, protecting the bacteria during the early stages of infection or until they develop a full complement of virulence factors. The intracellular environment also guards the bacteria against the activities of extracellular bactericides, antibodies, drugs, etc. Some bacteria that are intracellular parasites because they able to invade eucaryotic cells are listed in Table 1. Table 1. BACTERIAL INTRACELLULAR PATHOGENS

Organism Mycobacterium tuberculosis Mycobacterium leprae Listeria monocytogenes Salmonella typhi Shigella dysenteriae Yersinia pestis Brucella species Legionella pneumophila Rickettsiae Chlamydia

Disease Tuberculosis Leprosy Listeriosis Typhoid Fever Bacillary dysentery Plague Brucellosis Pneumonia Typhus; Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever Chlamydia; Trachoma

Some intracellular parasites have special genetically-encoded mechanisms to get themselves into host cells that are nonphagocytic. Pathogens such as Yersinia, Listeria, E. coli, Salmonella, Shigella and Legionella possess complex machinery for cellular invasion and intracellular survival. These systems involve various types of non-toxin virulence factors. Sometimes these factors are referred to as bacterial invasins. Still other bacteria such as Bordetella pertussis and Streptococcus pyogenes, have recently been discovered in the intracellular habitat of epithelial cells. Legionella pneumophila enters mononuclear phagocytes by depositing complement C3b on its surfaces and using that host protein to serve as a ligand for binding to macrophage cell surfaces. After ingestion, the bacteria remain in vacuoles that do not fuse with lysosomes, apparently due to the influence of soluble substances produced by the bacteria. Salmonella bacteria possesses an invasin operon (inv A - H) that encodes for factors that regulate their entry into host cells. Mutations in the operon yield organisms that can adhere to target cells without being internalized. This suggests that one or more of the inv proteins stimulates signal transduction in the host cell that results engulfment of the salmonellae. A similar invasin gene in Yersinia is known to encode a protein that both promotes adherence and activates the cytochalasin-dependent engulfment process. This invasin can confer invasive capacity on noninvasive E. coli, and even latex particles. Intracellular parasites survive inside of phagocytes by virtue of mechanisms which interfere with the bactericidal activities of the host cell. Some of these bacterial mechanisms include: 1. Inhibition of fusion of the phagocytic lysosomes (granules) with the phagosome. The bacteria survive inside of phagosomes because they prevent the discharge of lysosomal contents into the phagosome environment. Specifically, phagolysosome formation is inhibited in the phagocyte. This is the strategy employed by Salmonella, M. tuberculosis, Legionella and the chlamydiae. -With M. tuberculosis, bacterial cell wall components (sulfatides) are thought to be released from the phagosome that modify lysosomal membranes to inhibit fusion.

-In Chlamydia, some element of the bacterial (elementary body) wall appears to modify the membrane of the phagosome in which it is contained. -In L. pneumophila, as with the chlamydia, some structural feature of the bacterial cell surface, already present at the time of entry (ingestion), appears to modify the membranes of the phagosomes, thus preventing their merger with lysosomal granules. In Legionella, it is known that a single gene is responsible for the inhibition of phagosome lysosome fusion. -In Salmonella typhimurium, the pH that develops in the phagosome after engulfment actually induces bacterial gene products that are essential for their survival in macrophages. 2. Survival inside the phagolysosome. With some intracellular parasites, phagosome-lysosome fusion occurs, but the bacteria are resistant to inhibition and killing by the lysosomal constituents. Also, some extracellular pathogens can resist killing in phagocytes utilizing similar resistance mechanisms. Little is known of how bacteria can resist phagocytic killing within the phagocytic vacuole, but it may be due to the surface components of the bacteria or due to extracellular substances that they produce which interfere with the mechanisms of phagocytic killing. Some examples of how certain bacteria (both intracellular and extracellular pathogens) resist phagocytic killing are given below. -Mycobacteria (including M. tuberculosis and Mycobacterium leprae) grow inside phagocytic vacuoles even after extensive fusion with lysosomes. Mycobacteria have a waxy, hydrophobic cell wall containing mycolic acids and other lipids, and are not easily attacked by lysosomal enzymes. -Cell wall components (LPS?) of Brucella abortus apparently interfere with the intracellular bactericidal mechanisms of phagocytes. -B. abortus and Staphylococcus aureus are vigorous catalase and superoxide dismutase producers, which might neutralize the toxic oxygen radicals that are generated by the NADPH oxidase and MPO systems in phagocytes. S. aureus also produces cell-bound pigments (carotenoids) that "quench" singlet oxygen produced in the phagocytic vacuole. -The outer membrane and capsular components of Gram-negative bacteria (e.g. Salmonella, Yersinia, Brucella, E. coli) can protect the peptidoglycan layer from the lytic activity of lysozyme. -Some pathogens (e.g. Salmonella, E. coli) are known to produce extracellular iron-binding compounds (siderophores) which can extract Fe+++ from lactoferrin (or transferrin) and supply iron to cells for growth. -Bacillus anthracis resists killing and digestion by means of its capsule which is made up of poly-Dglutamate. The "unnatural" configuration of this polypeptide affords resistance to attack by cationic proteins or conventional proteases and prevents the deposition of complement on the bacterial surface. Escape from the phagosome. Early escape from the phagosome vacuole is essential for growth and virulence of some intracellular pathogens. -This is a clever strategy employed by the Rickettsiae. Rickettsia enter host cells in membrane-bound vacuoles (phagosomes) but are free in the cytoplasm a short time later, perhaps in as little as 30 seconds. A bacterial enzyme, phospholipase A, may be responsible for dissolution of the phagosome membrane. -Listeria monocytogenes relies on several molecules for early lysis of the phagosome to ensure their release into the cytoplasm. These include a pore-forming hemolysin (listeriolysin O) and two forms of phospholipase C. Once in the cytoplasm, Listeria induces its own movement through a remarkable process of host cell actin polymerization and formation of microfilaments within a comet-like tail. -Shigella also lyses the phagosomal vacuole and induces cytoskeletal actin polymerization for the purpose of intracellular movement and cell to cell spread. Products of Bacteria that Kill or Damage Phagocytes One obvious strategy in defense against phagocytosis is direct attack by the bacteria upon the professional phagocytes. Any of the substances that pathogens produce that cause damage to phagocytes have been referred to as aggressins. Most of these are actually extracellular enzymes or toxins that kill phagocytes. Phagocytes may be killed by a pathogen before or after ingestion. Killing Phagocytes Before Ingestion Many Gram-positive pathogens, particularly the pyogenic cocci, secrete extracellular substances that kill phagocytes, acting either as enzymes or "pore-formers" that lyse phagocyte membrane. Some of these

substances are described as hemolysins or leukocidins because of their lethal action against red blood cells or leukocytes. -Pathogenic streptococci produce streptolysin. Streptolysin O binds to cholesterol in membranes. The effect on neutrophils is to cause lysosomal granules to explode, releasing their lethal contents into the cell cytoplasm. -Pathogenic staphylococci produce leukocidin, which also acts on the neutrophil membrane and causes discharge of lysosomal granules. -Extracellular proteins that inhibit phagocytosis include the Exotoxin A of Pseudomonas aeruginosa which kills macrophages, and the bacterial exotoxins that are adenylate cyclases (e.g. anthrax toxin EF and pertussis toxin AC) which decrease phagocytic activity through disruption of cell equilibrium and consumption of ATP reserves needed for engulfment. Killing Phagocytes After Ingestion. Some bacteria exert their toxic action on the phagocyte after ingestion has taken place. They may grow in the phagosome and release substances which can pass through the phagosome membrane and cause discharge of lysosomal granules, or they may grow in the phagolysosome and release toxic substances which pass through the phagolysosome membrane to other target sites in the cell. Many bacteria that are the intracellular parasites of macrophages (e.g. Mycobacterium, Brucella, Listeria) usually destroy macrophages in the end, but the mechanisms are not completely understood. Other Antiphagocytic Strategies Used by Bacteria The foregoing has been a discussion of the most commonly-employed strategies of bacterial defense against phagocytes. Although there are few clear examples, some other antiphagocytic strategies or mechanisms probably exist. For example, a pathogen may have a mechanism to inhibit the production of phagocytes or their release from the bone marrow. A summary of bacterial mechanisms for interference with phagocytes is given in the table below.

Table 2. BACTERIAL INTERFERENCE WITH PHAGOCYTES

BACTERIUM Streptococcus pyogenes

TYPE OF INTERFERENCE Kill phagocyte Inhibit neutrophil chemotaxis

MECHANISM Streptolysin induces lysosomal discharge into cell cytoplasm Streptolysin is chemotactic repellent

Resist engulfment (unless M Protein on fimbriae Ab is present) Avoid detection by phagocytes Staphylococcus aureus Kill phagocyte Inhibit opsonized phagocytosis Resist killing Inhibit engulfment Kill phagocytes or Bacillus anthracis undermine phagocytic activity Resist engulfment and killing Hyaluronic acid capsule Leukocidin lyses phagocytes and induces lysosomal discharge into cytoplasm Protein A blocks Fc portion of Ab; polysaccharide capsule in some strains Carotenoids, catalase, superoxide dismutase detoxify toxic oxygen radicals produced in phagocytes Cell-bound coagulase hides ligands for phagocytic contact Anthrax toxin EF Capsular poly-D-glutamate

Streptococcus pneumoniae Klebsiella pneumoniae Haemophilus influenzae Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Resist engulfment (unless Capsular polysaccharide Ab is present) Resist engulfment Resist engulfment Kill phagocyte Resist engulfment Polysaccharide capsule Polysaccharide capsule Exotoxin A kills macrophages; Cellbound leukocidin Alginate slime and biofilm polymers Vi (K) antigen (microcapsule)

Salmonella typhi Salmonella enterica (typhimurium) Listeria monocytogenes Clostridium perfringens

Resist engulfment and killing

Bacteria develop resistance to low Survival inside phagocytes pH, reactive forms of oxygen, and host "defensins" (cationic proteins) Escape from phagosome Inhibit phagocyte chemotaxis Inhibit engulfment Resist engulfment and/or killing Kill phagocytes Listeriolysin, phospholipase C lyse phagosome membrane toxin Capsule Protein capsule on cell surface Yop proteins injected directly into neutrophils

Yersinia pestis Yersinia enterocolitica

Mycobacteria

Cell wall components prevent permeation of cells; soluble Resist killing and digestion substances detoxify of toxic oxygen radicals and prevent acidification of phagolysosome Inhibit lysosomal fusion Inhibit phagosomelysosomal fusion Mycobacterial sulfatides modify lysosomes Unknown

Mycobacterium tuberculosis Legionella pneumophila Neisseria gonorrhoeae Rickettsia Chlamydia Brucella abortus Treponema pallidum Escherichia coli

Inhibit phagolysosome Involves outer membrane protein formation; possibly reduce (porin) P.I respiratory burst Escape from phagosome Inhibit lysosomal fusion Resist killing Resist engulfment Resist engulfment Resist engulfment and possibly killing Phospholipase A Bacterial substance modifies phagosome Cell wall substance (LPS?) Polysaccharide capsule material O antigen (smooth strains); K antigen (acid polysaccharide) K antigen

Textbook of Bacteriology Index

Bacterial Defense against Specific Immune Responses 2011 Kenneth Todar, PhD Introduction

The inflammatory and phagocytic responses of the host to invading bacteria are immediate and nonspecific. A second, specific immune response is soon encountered by invasive bacteria. The adaptive immune forces of antibody-mediated immunity (AMI) and cell-mediated immunity (CMI) are brought into play during the presentation of bacterial antigens to the immunological system. Although AMI is the principal immunological response effective against extracellular bacteria, the major defensive and protective response against intracellular bacteria is CMI. On epithelial surfaces, the main specific immune defense of the host is the protection afforded by secretory IgA antibodies. Once the epithelial surfaces have been penetrated, however, the immune defenses of AMI and CMI are encountered. If there is a way for an organism to successfully bypass or overcome the immunological defenses, then some bacterial pathogen has probably "discovered" it. Bacteria evolve very rapidly in relation to their host, so that most of the feasible anti-host strategies are likely to have been tried out and exploited. Consequently, pathogenic bacteria have developed numerous ways to bypass or overcome the immunological defenses of the host, which contributes to the virulence of the microbe and the pathology of the disease. PATHOGEN STRATEGIES TO DEFEND AGAINST THE SPECIFIC IMMUNE DEFENSES Immunological Tolerance to a Bacterial Antigen Tolerance is a property of the host in which there is an immunologically-specific reduction in the immune response to a given antigen (Ag). Tolerance to a bacterial Ag does not involve a general failure in the immune response but a particular deficiency in relation to the specific antigen(s) of a given bacterium. If there is a depressed immune response to relevant antigens of a parasite, the process of infection is facilitated. Tolerance can involve either AMI or CMI or both arms of the immunological response. Tolerance to an Ag can arise in a number of ways, but three are possibly relevant to bacterial infections. 1. Fetal exposure to Ag. If a fetus is infected at certain stages of immunological development, the microbial Ag may be seen as "self", thus inducing tolerance (failure to undergo an immunological response) to the Ag which may persist even after birth. 2. High persistent doses of circulating Ag. Tolerance to a bacterium or one of its products might arise when large amounts of bacterial antigens are circulating in the blood. The immunological system becomes overwhelmed. 3. Molecular mimicry. If a bacterial Ag is very similar to normal host "antigens", the immune responses to this Ag may be weak giving a degree of tolerance. Resemblance between bacterial Ag and host Ag is referred to as molecular mimicry. In this case the antigenic determinants of the bacterium are so closely related chemically to host tissue components that the immunological cells cannot distinguish between the two and an immunological response cannot be raised. Some bacterial capsules are composed of polysaccharides (hyaluronic acid, sialic acid) so similar to host tissue polysaccharides that they are not immunogenic. Antigenic Disguises Some pathogens can hide their unique antigens from opsonizing antibodies or complement. Bacteria may be able to coat themselves with host proteins such as fibrin, fibronectin, or even immunolobulin molecules. In this way they are able to hide their own antigenic surface components from the immunological system. S. aureus produces cell-bound coagulase and clumping factor that cause fibrin to clot and to deposit on the cell surface. It is possible that this disguises the bacteria immunologically so that they are not readily identified as antigens and targets for an immunological response. Protein A produced by S. aureus, and the analogous Protein G produced by Streptococcus pyogenes, bind the Fc portion of immunoglobulins, thus coating the bacteria with antibodies and canceling their opsonizing capacity by the disorientation. The fibronectin coat of Treponema pallidum provides an immunological disguise for the spirochete. E. coli K1, that causes meningitis in newborns, has a capsule composed predominantly of sialic acid providing an antigenic disguise, as does the hyaluronic acid capsule of Streptococcus pyogenes. Immunosuppression Some pathogens (mainly viruses and protozoa, rarely bacteria) cause immunosuppression in their infected host. This means that the host shows depressed immune responses to antigens in general, including those of the infecting pathogen.

Suppressed immune responses are occasionally observed during chronic bacterial infections such as leprosy and tuberculosis. This is significant considering a third of the world population is infected with Mycobacterium tuberculosis. In extreme forms of leprosy, caused by Mycobacterium leprae, there is poor response to leprosy antigens, as well as unrelated antigens. After patients have been successfully treated, immunological reactivity reappears, suggesting that general immunosuppression is in fact due to the disease. In mild cases of leprosy there is frequently an associated immunological suppression that is specific for M. leprae antigens. This is separate from tolerance, since unique antigens (proteins) of M. leprae have been associated as the cause of this immunosuppression. This could be explained by (1) lack of costimulatory signals (interference with cytokine secretion); (2) activation of suppressor T cells; (3) disturbances in TH1/TH2 cell activities. At present, little is known of the mechanisms by which bacterial pathogens inhibit general immune responses. It seems probable that it is due to interference with the functions of B cells, T cells or macrophages. Since many intracellular bacteria infect macrophages, it might be expected that they compromise the role of these cells in an immunological response. General immunosuppression induced in a host may be of immediate value to an invading pathogen, but it is of no particular significance (to the invader) if it merely promotes infection by unrelated microorganisms. Perhaps this is why it does not seem to be a commonly used strategy of the bacteria. Persistence of a Pathogen at Bodily Sites Inaccessible to Specific Immune Response Some pathogens can avoid exposing themselves to immune forces. Intracellular pathogens can evade host immunological responses as long as they stay inside of infected cells and they do not allow microbial Ag to form on the cell surface. This is seen in macrophages infected with Brucella, Listeria or M. leprae. The macrophages support the growth of the bacteria and at the same time give them protection from immune responses. Some intracellular pathogens (Yersinia, Shigella, Listeria, E. coli) may take up residency in cells that are neither phagocytes nor APC's and their antigens are not displayed on the infected cell's surface. They are virtually unseen by cells of the immune system. Some pathogens persist on the luminal surfaces of the GI tract, oral cavity and the urinary tract, or the lumen of the salivary gland, mammary gland or the kidney tubule. If there is no host cell destruction, the pathogen may avoid inducing an inflammatory response, and there is no way in which sensitized lymphocytes or circulating antibodies can reach the site to eliminate the infection. Secretory IgA could react with surface antigens on bacterial cells, but the complement sequence would be unlikely to be activated and the cells would not be destroyed. Conceivably, IgA antibodies could immobilize bacteria by agglutination of cells or block adherence of bacteria to tissue or cell surfaces, but it is unlikely that IgA would kill bacteria directly or inhibit their growth. Some examples of bacterial pathogens that grow at tissue sites generally inaccessible to the forces of AMI and CMI are given below. treptococcus mutans can initiate dental caries at any time after the eruption of the teeth, regardless of the immune status of the host. Either the host does not undergo an effective immune response or secretory IgA plays little role in preventing colonization and subsequent plaque development. Vibrio cholerae multiplies in the GI tract where the bacteria elaborate a toxin which causes loss of fluids and diarrhea in the host which is characteristic of the disease cholera. IgA antibodies against cellular antigens of the cholera vibrios are not completely effective in preventing infection by these bacteria as demonstrated by the relative ineffectiveness of the cholera vaccine prepared from phenol-killed vibrios. The carrier state of typhoid fever results from a persistent infection by the typhoid bacillus, Salmonella typhi. The organism is not eliminated during the initial infection and persists in the host for months, years or a life time. In the carrier state, S. typhi is able to colonize the biliary tract (gall bladder) away from the immune forces, and be shed into urine and feces. Some bacteria cause persistent infections in the lumen of glands. Brucella abortus persistently infects mammary glands of cows and is shed in the milk. Leptospira multiplies persistently in the lumen of the kidney tubules of rats and is shed in the urine and remains infectious. Bacteria causing infections of the hair follicles, such as acne, seldom encounter the immunological tissues. Induction of Ineffective Antibody Many types of antibody (Ab) are formed against a given Ag, and some bacterial components may display various antigenic determinants. Antibodies tend to range in their capacity to react with Ag (the ability of

specific Ab to bind to an Ag is called avidity). If Abs formed against a bacterial Ag are of low avidity, or if they are directed against unimportant antigenic determinants, they may have only weak antibacterial action. Such "ineffective" (non-neutralizing) Abs might even aid a pathogen by combining with a surface Ag and blocking the attachment of any functional Abs that might be present. In the case of Neisseria gonorrhoeae the presence of antibody to an outer membrane protein called rmp interferes with the serum bactericidal reaction and in some way compromises the surface defenses of the female urogenital tract. Increased susceptibility to reinfection is highly correlated with the presence of circulating rmp antibodies. Antibodies Absorbed by Soluble Bacterial Antigens Some bacteria can liberate antigenic surface components in a soluble form into the tissue fluids. These soluble antigens are able to combine with and "neutralize" antibodies before they reach the bacterial cells. For example, small amounts of endotoxin (LPS) may be released into surrounding fluids by Gram-negative bacteria. Autolysis of Gram-negative or Gram-positive bacteria may release antigenic surface components in a soluble form. Streptococcus pneumoniae and Neisseria meningitidis are known to release capsular polysaccharides during growth in tissues. They are found in the serum of patients with pneumococcal pneumonia and in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with meningitis. Theoretically, these released surface antigens could "mop up" antibody before it reached the bacterial surface which should be an advantage to the pathogen. These soluble bacterial cell wall components are powerful antigens and complement activators so they contribute in a major way to the pathology observed in meningitis and pneumonia. Protein A, produced by S. aureus may remain bound to the staphylococcal cell surface or it may be released in a soluble form. Protein A will bind to the Fc region of IgG. On the cell surface, protein A binds IgG in the wrong orientation to exert its antibacterial activity, and soluble protein A agglutinates and partially inactivates IgG. Local Interference with Antibody Activity There are probably several ways that pathogens interfere with the antibacterial action of antibody molecules. Some pathogens produce enzymes that destroy antibodies. Neisseria gonorrhoeae, N. meningitidis, Haemophilus influenzae, Streptococcus pneumoniae and Streptococcus mutans, which can grow on the surfaces of the body, produce IgA proteases that inactivate secretory IgA by cleaving the molecule at the hinge region, detaching the Fc region of the immunoglobulin. Soluble forms of Protein A produced S. aureus agglutinate immunoglobulin molecules and partially inactivate IgG. Antigenic Variation One way bacteria can trick forces of the immunological response is to periodically change antigens, i.e., to undergo antigenic variation. Antigens may vary or change in the host during the course of an infection, or an organism can exist in nature as multiple antigenic type (serotypes or serovars). Antigenic variation is an important mechanism used by pathogenic microorganisms for escaping the neutralizing activities of antibodies. Some types of antigenic variation during the course of an infection result from site-specific inversions or gene conversions or gene rearrangements in the DNA of the microorganisms. Such is the case with some pathogens that change antigens during infection by switching from one fimbrial type to another, or by switching fimbrial tips. This makes the original AMI response obsolete by using new fimbriae that do not bind the previous antibodies. Neisseria gonorrhoeae can change fimbrial antigens during the course of an infection. During initial stages of an infection, adherence to epithelial cells of the cervix or urethra is mediated by pili (fimbriae). Equally efficient attachment to phagocytes would be undesirable. Rapid switching on and off of the genes controlling pili are therefore necessary at different stages of the infection, and N. gonorrhoeae is capable of undergoing this type of "pili switching" or phase variation. Genetically controlled changes in outer membrane proteins also occur in the course of an infection. This finely controlled expression of the genes for pili and surface proteins changes the adherence pattern to different host cells, and increases resistance to phagocytosis and immune lysis. The "relapses" of relapsing fever caused by the spirochete, Borrelia recurrentis, are a result of antigenic variation by the organism. The disease is characterized by episodes of fever which relapse (come and go) for a period of weeks or months. After infection, the bacteria multiply in tissues and cause a febrile illness until the onset of an immunological response a week or so later. Bacteria then disappear from the blood because of antibody mediated phagocytosis, lysis, agglutination, etc., and the fever falls. Then an antigenically

distinct mutant arises in the infected individual, multiplies, and in 4-10 days reappears in the blood and there is another febrile attack. The immunological system is stimulated and responds by conquering the new antigenic variant, but the cycle continues such that there may be up to 10 febrile episodes before final recovery. With each attack a new antigenic variant of the spirochete appears and a new set of antibodies is formed in the host. Thus, this change in antigens during the infection contributes significantly to the course of the disease. Many pathogenic bacteria exist in nature as multiple antigenic types or serotypes, meaning that they are variant strains of the same pathogenic species. For example, there are multiple serotypes of Salmonella enterica based on differences in cell wall (O) antigens and/or flagellar (H) antigens. There are 80 different antigenic types of Streptococcus pyogenes based on M-proteins on the cell surface. There are over one hundred strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae depending on their capsular polysaccharide antigens. Based on minor differences in surface structure chemistry there are multiple serotypes of Vibrio cholerae, Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Neisseria gonorrhoeae and an assortment of other bacterial pathogens. Antigenic variation is prevalent among pathogenic viruses as well.