Chair of Medical Biology, Microbiology, Virology,

and Immunology

PATHOGENIC
SPIROCHETES

Lecturer Prof. S.I. Klymnyuk

Groups of spiral shaped bacteria,

which are pathogenic for human
Vibrio
Campylobacter
Helicobacter
Spirilla
Spirochetes

Treponema
Borrelia
Leptospira

Evolution of spiral-shaped
bacteria
Vibrio, Campylobacter, Helicpbacter
and Spirilla develop together with
Eubacteria.
Spirochetes are differed according to
their morphological and physiological
signs. There is hypothesis about their
intermediate evolution position
between Protozoa and Bacteria

Sodoku (Spirillum minor)

Main pathogenic bacteria of

Spirochetaceae
Genus

Species

Treponema T.pallidum

T.pallidum
T. pallidum
T.arateum
T.vincentii

Borellia

Leptospira

Subspecie
s
pallidum
endemicu
m
Pertenue

Disease
Syphilis
Bejel
Yaws
Pinta
Vincents angina

B.recurrenti
s
B.caucasica
, B.duttoni,
B.persica

Epidemic relapcing
fever
Endemic relapsing fever

B.burgdorfe
ri

Lyme disease

Icterohaem

Leptospirosis

Spirochetes structure

Spirochetes morphology

Treponema

Leptospira

Borrelia

Spirochetes ultrastructure

Borrelia

Leptospira

Classification of Human
Terponema

Non-pathogenic

T.denticola
T.macrodenticum
T.orale

Conditionally
pathogenic
T.vincentii

Pathogenic
T.pallidum pallidum
(syphilis)
T.pallidum
endemicum (bejel)
T.pallidum pertenue
(yaws)
T.carateum (pinta)

Vincents angina

Noma (gangrenous stomatitis)

Treponema in tested
material

Cell attacked by treponema

Hard chancre

Clinical findings of Syphilis

Secondary syphilis

Hetchinzone
teeth

Microbiologic diagnosis of
Syphilis

Microscopy (native an
fixed material)
Romanovsky-Giemsa
stain
Phase contrast
Dark field

Chain polymerase
reaction

Serologic diagnosis
Wassermanns test (CFT)
Sedimentation reartions
(hns and SachsWitebskys tests)
Microreaction of
Treponema pallidum
immobilization
IFT, ELYSA, IHAT

Tropic trepanematoses:
pinta (T.carateum), bejel
(T.endemicum), yaws (T.pertenue)
Yaws (tropic granuloma)

Bejel (endemic syphilis)

Yaws

Pinta

Bejel

Borrelia morphology

Borrelia in blood smear

Lyme disease
Causative agents:
Borrelia burgdorferi
Borrelia garinii
Borrelia afzelii

B. burgdorferi

Leptospira morphology

Clinical findings of
leptospirosis

Morphlogy of Campylobacter

Morphlogy of Campylobacter
S-form
S-form

Comma-form

Spiral-shaped
form

Main biochemical differences between

Campylobacter and Helicobacter
Specie Cat 2 Hippura Oxi- Ure- Growth
s
ate test das ase at 42
S
0
lase
e

C.
+
+
+
+
+
jejuni
C.coli
+
+
+
+
C.
+
+
+
fetus
H.pylo +
+
+
+
ri

Campylobacteriosis in
human

Diarrhea (enterococlites), sometimes

bloodly
Endoracditis, pericarditis, meningitis,
encephalitis, septicemia
Disease of genitourinary tract
Pathology of pregnancy (abortion,
premature delivery)
Autoimmune pathology with alteration of
central nervous system

H. pylori diseases in human

Chronic gastritis

Gastric and duodenal ulcer

Adenocarcinoma and B-Lymphoma of

stomach

Alterations of cardiovascular system?

Evidances of etiologic role of

Helicobacter pylori in pathogenesis of
ulcer disease

> 95% patients with duodenal ulcer and

> 80 % patients with gastric
ulcer are infected with H. pylori: this level
is more then in healthy persons;
In persons, which are infected with H.
pylori, duodenal ulcer develops more
frequently then in non-infected ones;
Antibacterial drugs have medicinal effect
and safely prevent ulcer disease relapses

Morphology of Helicobacter

Helicobacter pylori in
mucous membrane of a
stomach

Helicobacter
pylori

Peculiarities of Helicobacter
pylori

Microaerophilic bacterium (5% 2, 5-10 %

2);
They require special nutrient media, a surface
of medium must be moist);
They give growth in 48-72 hours, when
antibiotics are used in 13 days;
They have high urease, catalase and oxidase
activity;
They are motile;
They are polymorphic bacteria (commashaped, spiral-shaped, coccal-shaped forms)

Cultivation of Helicobacter
pylori

 H. pylory

Pathogenesis of ulcer disease

1.

Infection develops in
antral part of stomach

2.

Inflammation causes
gastritis, duodenitis,
but sometimes it is
without any
symptoms

3.

Ulcer is result of
inflammation, its
complication perforation and
hemorrhage

Pathogenicity factors of
H.pylori

Enzymes of virulence:
Urease
Phospholipase
Proteases
dhesins
Toxins:
Endotoxin
Exotoxin-cytotoxin (factor which is
responcible for formation of vacuoles)

Detection of vacuolizing factor in

cell culture

Positive results

Negative results

Survival factors of
Helicobacter pylori in a stomach

Neutralization of acidic
contents of the stomach
near bacteria (urease,
altruistic autolysis)
Active invasion in mucous
layer which covers stomach
epithelium (lophotrichates)
Ability to adhere to
epitheliocytes of stomach
(fimbria with hemagglutinin
activity)

Diagnousis of Helicobacter
pylori
Bacteriologic

Isolation of causative
agent

Hystologic

Examination of causative
agent in histological
sections and biopsy
specimen

Urease

Examination of
biochemical activity in
biopsy specimen

Respiratory

test

Immunologic

Examination of of urease
activity of causative
agent in the stomach with
help of C isotopes (13,
14
)
ELYSA, examination of
bacterial antigens in feces

Urease test for

diagnosis of
helicobacteriosis

Test-system for diagnosis of helicobacteriosis