title: Fimbriation and curliation in Escherichia coli O157:H7: a paradigm of intestinal and environmental colonization.
abstract: Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli (STEC) serotypes, particularly E. coli O157:H7, possess a variety of fimbrial and afimbrial adhesins which have emerged as important contributors to intestinal colonization. E. coli O157:H7 possesses two chromosomal operons encoding long polar fimbriae (Lpf), which have been found to influence adherence in vitro and colonization in vivo. In a recent Infection and Immunity paper, we further explored the role of Lpf in E. coli O157:H7 intestinal colonization by using the infant rabbit model of STEC infection. We found that an E. coli O157:H7 Lpf-deficient mutant was outcompeted in the rabbit intestine by its parental strain, which may suggest that Lpf contributes to colonization. In contrast, the Lpf-deficient mutant showed an increased adherence to cultured intestinal epithelial cells, and we discovered that this strain overexpressed curli fibers. In this addendum article, we provide a continued perspective on the predicted roles of Lpf and curli, both in vivo and in vitro.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA.
authors.forename: Sonja J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Lloyd
authors.forename: Jennifer M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Ritchie
authors.forename: Alfredo G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Torres
mesh_terms: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D000818:Animals; D001422:Bacterial Adhesion; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D004783:Environmental Microbiology; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000382:microbiology; D019453:Escherichia coli O157 / Q000378:metabolism / Q000472:pathogenicity* / Q000502:physiology; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D036781:Fimbriae Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007422:Intestines / Q000382:microbiology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D011817:Rabbits; D037521:Virulence Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D018829:Adhesins, Bacterial; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D029968:Escherichia coli Proteins; D037521:Virulence Factors; D036781:Fimbriae Proteins; C077481:Crl protein, Bacteria