Abstract
Bacteria that are engulfed by phagocytic cells of the immune system are usually destroyed once inside the host cell but not always. Why is it that sometimes engulfed bacteria survive and thrive quite happily inside the host cell? As Mulvey and Hultgren explain in their Perspective, the answer may lie in small indentations in the host cell plasma membrane called caveolae that direct certain signal transduction pathways inside the host cell (Shin et al.). If bacteria adhere to regions of the host cell surface that is rich in caveolae, they are better able to survive once inside the cell.
MeSH terms
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Adhesins, Bacterial / metabolism
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Adhesins, Escherichia coli*
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Animals
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Antigens, CD / metabolism
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Bacterial Adhesion
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CD48 Antigen
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Caveolin 1
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Caveolins*
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Cell Membrane / chemistry
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Cell Membrane / metabolism*
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Cell Membrane / microbiology
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Cell Membrane / ultrastructure
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Endocytosis*
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Escherichia coli / metabolism*
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Escherichia coli / pathogenicity
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Fimbriae Proteins*
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Glycosylphosphatidylinositols / metabolism
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Macrophages / microbiology
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Mast Cells / metabolism
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Mast Cells / microbiology*
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Mast Cells / ultrastructure
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Membrane Proteins / analysis
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Mice
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Signal Transduction
Substances
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Adhesins, Bacterial
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Adhesins, Escherichia coli
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Antigens, CD
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CD48 Antigen
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Caveolin 1
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Caveolins
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Glycosylphosphatidylinositols
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Membrane Proteins
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fimH protein, E coli
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Fimbriae Proteins