Host Species-Specific Damage to Oviduct Mucosa by Neisseria gonorrhoeae Lipopolysaccharide

Abstract

The selective toxicity of gonococcal lipopolysaccharide for the mucosa of human fallopian tubes, which is demonstrated in these studies, may be responsible in part for the specificity of naturally occurring gonococcal infections for humans.

Analysis of damage to human ciliated nasopharyngeal epithelium by Neisseria meningitidis

“…Alternatively, ciliated cells from different sources may differ in their susceptibility to the toxicity of LPS. For example, gonococcal LPS does not produce detectable damage to ciliary activity of rabbit, pig, or cow oviducts despite a profound effect on ciliary activity of human fallopian tube drgan cultures (13). In addition, a ciliostatic substance, probably endotoxin, of H. influenzae causes marked damage at low concentrations in rat tracheal organ cultures, but chicken and some human fetal tracheal organ cultures are less sensitive or insensitive (9).…”

Gonococcal and meningococcal pathogenesis as defined by human cell, cell culture, and organ culture assays.

“…Polymyxin B neutralized LPS-induced damage, suggesting that the lipid A portion of LPS was the toxic moiety. In contrast, purified gonococcal and meningococcal LPS at 100 ,ug/ml did not damage NPOC from humans (57) or FTOC from rabbits, pigs, and cows (17). These studies indicate that N. gonorrhoeae and possibly N. meningitidis damage ciliated epithelial cells indirectly by release of LPS, peptidoglycan monomers, and possibly other toxins from the organisms and suggest that there are differences in the susceptibility of ciliated cells to these toxins.…”

“…However, when they are compared with human tissue from the same site, major differences are reported. For example, gonococci attach to nonciliated mucosal cells of the human fallopian tube and damage the ciliary function of human fallopian tube organ cultures but not fallopian tube' organ cultures of rabbits, pigs, and cows (17,27,28).…”

Interaction of pathogenic neisseriae with nonphagocytic cells.

“…Shortly after colonization, neighboring uncolonized ciliated cells stop beating and slough from the tissue. Bacterial lipooligosaccharide (LOS) and cell wall peptidoglycan are strongly implicated in GC-mediated toxicity (36,37,70,71), and there is also evidence that MC LOS has a toxic activity, but only on human fallopian tube organ culture and not human pharyngeal organ culture, suggesting a selective toxicity (115). These studies with tissue segments strongly suggest that bacteria enter the apical side of the epithelial cells, transcytose to and exocytose through the basolateral side of the cells, and enter the subepithelial matrix.…”