title: Effect of staphylococcal beta toxin on the cytotoxicity, proliferation and adherence of Staphylococcus aureus to bovine mammary epithelial cells.
abstract: The effect of staphylococcal beta toxin on the cytotoxicity, proliferation and adherence of S. aureus. to bovine mammary epithelial cells was studied. Bovine erythrocytes and mammary epithelial cells were incubated with purified staphylococcal alpha and beta toxins and with culture supernatants from S. aureus M60 and two mutant strain that are negative for either the production of alpha (DU5789 alpha-) or beta (DU5846 beta-) toxin. Lysis of bovine erythrocytes was due primarily to beta toxin. Alpha toxin increased the lysis of bovine erythrocytes by purified beta toxin, but the presence of alpha toxin in culture supernatants from S. aureus did not increase the lysis of bovine erythrocytes. Purified beta toxin was cytotoxic to mammary secretory epithelial cells, but to a lesser extent than alpha toxin. Together they exhibited an additive effect on mammary epithelial cells. Inactivation of the alpha toxin-gene of S. aureus M60 decreased the cytotoxic effect on mammary epithelial cells to a greater extent than the inactivation of the beta toxin-gene. Also, the relative percentages of DU5789 alpha- and DU5846 beta- adhering to mammary cell monolayers, the number and size of colonies and the number of infected epithelial cells decreased. This in vitro study showed that beta toxin damages bovine mammary secretory epithelial cells, increased the damaging effects of alpha toxin, increases the adherence of S. aureus to mammary epithelial cells and increases the proliferation of S. aureus.
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park 20705, USA.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Cifrian
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Guidry
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Bramley
authors.forename: N L
authors.initials: NL
authors.lastname: Norcross
authors.forename: F D
authors.initials: FD
authors.lastname: Bastida-Corcuera
authors.forename: W W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Marquardt
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion / Q000187:drug effects; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000633:toxicity*; D002417:Cattle; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D004848:Epithelium / Q000187:drug effects / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D006461:Hemolysis; D008321:Mammary Glands, Animal / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D013108:Sphingomyelin Phosphodiesterase; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D006460:Hemolysin Proteins; C021091:staphylococcal alpha-toxin; D013108:Sphingomyelin Phosphodiesterase; C029878:hlb protein, Staphylococcus aureus