Publication Date:
2004-08-31
Description:
Group A streptococci, a common human pathogen, secrete streptokinase, which activates the host's blood clot-dissolving protein, plasminogen. Streptokinase is highly specific for human plasminogen, exhibiting little or no activity against other mammalian species, including mouse. Here, a transgene expressing human plasminogen markedly increased mortality in mice infected with streptococci, and this susceptibility was dependent on bacterial streptokinase expression. Thus, streptokinase is a key pathogenicity factor and the primary determinant of host species specificity for group A streptococcal infection. In addition, local fibrin clot formation may be implicated in host defense against microbial pathogens.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Notes: 〈/span〉Sun, Hongmin -- Ringdahl, Ulrika -- Homeister, Jonathon W -- Fay, William P -- Engleberg, N Cary -- Yang, Angela Y -- Rozek, Laura S -- Wang, Xixi -- Sjobring, Ulf -- Ginsburg, David -- P01HL057346/HL/NHLBI NIH HHS/ -- New York, N.Y. -- Science. 2004 Aug 27;305(5688):1283-6.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Author address: 〈/span〉Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.〈br /〉〈span class="detail_caption"〉Record origin:〈/span〉 〈a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15333838" target="_blank"〉PubMed〈/a〉
Keywords:
Ancrod/pharmacology
;
Animals
;
Anticoagulants/pharmacology
;
Bacterial Proteins/metabolism
;
Carrier Proteins/metabolism
;
Colony Count, Microbial
;
Disease Susceptibility
;
Fibrin/metabolism
;
Fibrinolysin/metabolism
;
Fibrinolysis
;
Gene Deletion
;
Humans
;
Immunity, Innate
;
Mice
;
Mice, Inbred C57BL
;
Plasminogen/genetics/*metabolism
;
Skin/blood supply/microbiology
;
Species Specificity
;
Spleen/microbiology
;
Streptococcal Infections/*microbiology
;
Streptococcus pyogenes/*enzymology/growth & development/*pathogenicity
;
Streptokinase/genetics/*metabolism
;
Transgenes
;
Virulence
Print ISSN:
0036-8075
Electronic ISSN:
1095-9203
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Computer Science
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
,
Physics
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