title: Amoebal endosymbiont Protochlamydia induces apoptosis to human immortal HEp-2 cells.
abstract: Protochlamydia, an environmental chlamydia and obligate amoebal endosymbiotic bacterium, evolved to survive within protist hosts, such as Acanthamobae, 700 million years ago. However, these bacteria do not live in vertebrates, including humans. This raises the possibility that interactions between Protochlamydia and human cells could induce a novel cytopathic effect, leading to new insights into host-parasite relationships. Therefore, we studied the effect of Protochlamydia on the survival of human immortal cell line, HEp-2 cells and primary peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC). Using mainly 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole staining, fluorescent in situ hybridization, transmission electron microscopy, and also TUNEL and Transwell assays, we demonstrated that the Protochlamydia induced apoptosis in HEp-2 cells. The attachment of viable bacterial cells, but not an increase of bacterial infectious progenies within the cells, was required for the apoptosis. Other chlamydiae [Parachlamydia acanthamoebae and Chlamydia trachomatis (serovars D and L2)] did not induce the same phenomena, indicating that the observed apoptosis may be specific to the Protochlamydia. Furthermore, the bacteria had no effect on the survival of primary PBMCs collected from five volunteers, regardless of activation. We concluded that Protochlamydia induces apoptosis in human-immortal HEp-2 cells and that this endosymbiont could potentially be used as a biological tool for the elucidation of novel host-parasite relationships.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Laboratory Science, Faculty of Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Junji
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Matsuo
authors.forename: Shinji
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Asahi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Miho
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Okude
authors.forename: Yasuhiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Hayashi
authors.forename: Haruna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sakai
authors.forename: Mitsutaka
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yoshida
authors.forename: Kaori
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takahashi
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yamaguchi
mesh_terms: D000656:Amoeba / Q000382:microbiology*; D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D002460:Cell Line; D002689:Chlamydia / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D002843:Chromatin / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D019169:Jurkat Cells; D014709:Vero Cells
chemical_list: D002843:Chromatin