Molecular Dissection of Mycoplasma Hominis

Ladefoged, Søren

doi:10.1111/apm.2000.108.s97.5

Cited by 27 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 309 publications

(113 reference statements)

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“…The IncA CTR present at the C-terminal end of the protein could therefore affect the conformation of the protein inducing changes in its antigenicity, as previously observed. Size variation in surface proteins Lmp1 and Lmp3 of Mycoplasma hominis has also been correlated to tandem repeats at the C-terminal end of the proteins [20].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification and characterisation of coding tandem repeat variants inincAgene ofChlamydophila pecorum

et al. 2008

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-Bacteria of the family Chlamydiaceae are obligate intracellular pathogens of human and animals. Chlamydophila pecorum is associated with different pathological conditions in ruminants, swine and koala. To characterize a coding tandem repeat (CTR) identified at the 3' end of incA gene of C. pecorum, 51 strains of different chlamydial species were examined. The CTR were observed in 18 of 18 tested C. pecorum isolates including symptomatic and asymptomatic animals from diverse geographical origins. The CTR were also found in two strains of C. abortus respectively isolated from faeces from a healthy ewe and from a goat belonging to asymptomatic herds, but were absent in C. abortus strains isolated from clinical disease specimens, and in tested strains of C. psittaci, C. caviae, C. felis and C. trachomatis. The number of CTR repeats is variable and encode several motifs that are rich in alanine and proline. The CTR-derived variable structure of incA, which encode the Chlamydiaceae-specific type III secreted inclusion membrane protein, IncA, may be involved in the adaptation of C. pecorum to its environment by allowing it to persist in the host cell.Chlamydophila pecorum / incA gene / coding tandem repeats

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identification and characterisation of coding tandem repeat variants inincAgene ofChlamydophila pecorum

et al. 2008

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“…M. hominis can be isolated from the genital tracts of both symptomatic and asymptomatic individuals. Nevertheless, there is evidence that the bacterium may play important etiologic roles in genital tract diseases of both men and women (21,32).…”

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confidence: 99%

Long-Term Survival and Intracellular Replication of Mycoplasma hominis in Trichomonas vaginalis Cells: Potential Role of the Protozoon in Transmitting Bacterial Infection

et al. 2005

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The existence of a symbiotic relationship between Trichomonas vaginalis and Mycoplasma hominis, which is the first reported example of symbiosis between two obligate human pathogens, has been recently reported by our research group. In this work, we examined the cellular location of M. hominis in respect to T. vaginalis. By using gentamicin protection assays, double immunofluorescence, and confocal microscopy, we obtained strong evidence that M. hominis is located within protozoan cells. 5-Bromodeoxyuridine incorporation assays showed that intracellularly located mycoplasmas actively synthesize DNA. Our results demonstrate that M. hominis has the capability of entering trichomonad cells and of replicating inside the protozoon. These findings suggest that symbiosis might provide the bacteria, during human infection, with the capability to resist to environmental stresses, such as host defense mechanisms and pharmacological therapies.Trichomonas vaginalis is a parasitic protozoon responsible for trichomoniasis, one of the most common sexually transmitted diseases in humans, estimated to affect at least 200 million people worldwide (37). Studies carried out with large groups of women suffering from vaginitis showed that T. vaginalis is clinically associated with Mycoplasma hominis (18, 35), a bacterium that, like the protozoon, resides exclusively in the human genital tract. The association is strictly species specific, since is not observed with Ureaplasma urealyticum, another Mollicutes species that is a much more common inhabitant of the human genital tract. The clinical association between the two pathogens has been recently explained by the demonstration of a symbiotic relationship between T. vaginalis and M. hominis (27). More than 90% of T. vaginalis clinical isolates from our collection proved to be infected by M. hominis independent of their geographic origin. Our recent work has allowed us to shed light on some aspects of the phenomenon (28).The presence of endosymbionts in free-living protozoa is frequently described, but it has been never reported in obligate parasitic protozoa. The first example of symbiosis involving a human pathogen was described for Legionella pneumophila, a bacterial pathogen that is responsible for Legionnaire's disease, and Acanthamoeba sp., a free-living opportunistic amoeba (30). The relationship between T. vaginalis and M. hominis is the only one described so far involving two obligate human pathogens. T. vaginalis is responsible for severe vaginitis accompanied by abdominal pain, itching, and foul-smelling discharge (29) and is mainly asymptomatic in men (20). Moreover, trichomoniasis is associated with an enhanced risk of neoplastic transformation in cervical tissues (38) and increased human immunodeficiency virus seroconversion in women (22,31). The mechanisms by which T. vaginalis exerts its pathogenic effects involve adhesion to host cells (1, 2, 19) and the activity of pH-dependent pore-forming proteins (14, 15) and of cytoskeleton-disrupting proteases (16). M. hominis c...

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“…Adherence and intense antigenic variation allow mycoplasmas to escape efficiently from host immune responses, thus allowing chronic infectious diseases to become established (11,16,18). More than 170 mycoplasma species live as parasites on human and animal cellular surfaces by sticking to and colonizing the epithelial coating of the respiratory and urogenital tracts, but rarely invade adjacent tissues (11).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More than 170 mycoplasma species live as parasites on human and animal cellular surfaces by sticking to and colonizing the epithelial coating of the respiratory and urogenital tracts, but rarely invade adjacent tissues (11). The pathogenicity of mycoplasmas is therefore related, among other things, to the absence of the cell wall.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Characterization of Mycoplasma penetrans and Mycoplasma fermentans immunodominant proteins

Bruder

Godry

Takei

et al. 2005

Braz. J. Microbiol.

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Mycoplasmas are a heterogeneous group of the smallest organisms capable of self replication and are known to cause many detrimental diseases in both animals and humans. These wall-less prokaryotes are enveloped by a lipoprotein membrane and their small genomes are sufficient to synthesize molecules required for growth and self-replication. Among sixteen species isolated from humans, Mycoplasma pneumoniae, an agent of primary atypical pneumonia, and the urogenital tract species Mycoplasma hominis, Ureaplasma urealyticum and Ureaplasma parvum have been confirmed to be pathogenic. Mycoplasma penetrans and Mycoplasma fermentans, which are species associated with HIV, have been investigated mainly in research laboratories. In this study we have characterized lipid-associated membrane proteins (LAMP) of Mycoplasma penetrans and Mycoplasma fermentans, in view of the importance of mycoplasmas in human diseases and the peculiar antigenic variation observed in these species. To characterize proteins with possible diagnostic value, we used ELISA and Western blot in sera of pregnant women whose cervical samples were positive for these species of mycoplasmas when tested by PCR. ELISA showed IgG anti-LAMP-M. fermentans antibodies to be present in 57.5% of cases and IgM antibodies to be present in 74.5% of cases. The three samples that were PCR positive for M. penetrans showed IgG anti-LAMP-M. penetrans antibodies, and one sample was positive for IgM. No IgA antibodies against either species were detected in any of the samples. LAMP analysis by Western blot revealed the 35, 38, 42, 61 and 103 kDa proteins of M. penetrans and the 29, 38, 41, 61, 78 and 95 kDa proteins of M. fermentans. Among these, will be considered p35 to M. penetrans and 29 kDa protein to M. fermentans, the main immunoreactive proteins and therefore useful markers for further laboratory diagnosis.

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Molecular Dissection of Mycoplasma Hominis

Cited by 27 publications

References 309 publications

Identification and characterisation of coding tandem repeat variants inincAgene ofChlamydophila pecorum

Identification and characterisation of coding tandem repeat variants inincAgene ofChlamydophila pecorum

Long-Term Survival and Intracellular Replication of Mycoplasma hominis in Trichomonas vaginalis Cells: Potential Role of the Protozoon in Transmitting Bacterial Infection

Characterization of Mycoplasma penetrans and Mycoplasma fermentans immunodominant proteins

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