Cell targeting by the Staphylococcus aureus pore-forming toxins: it's not just about lipids.
Staphylococcus aureus employs numerous pore-forming cytotoxins to injure host immune cells and promote infection. Until recently, it was unclear how these cytotoxins targeted specific cell types for lysis. Membrane lipids were initially postulated to be cytotoxin receptor candidates. However, the cell-type specificity and species-dependent targeting of these toxins did not support lipids as sole receptors. The recent identification of proteinaceous receptors for several S. aureus cytotoxins now provides an explanation for the observed tropism. These findings also have important implications for the implementation of animal models to study S. aureus pathogenesis, and for the development of novel therapeutics.
Department of Microbiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA.
Ashley L
AL
DuMont
Department of Microbiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY 10016, USA. Electronic address: victor.torres@nyumc.org.
Victor J
VJ
Torres
D000818:Animals; D001427:Bacterial Toxins / Q000378:metabolism*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D006801:Humans; D013203:Staphylococcal Infections / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D014774:Virulence; D037521:Virulence Factors / Q000378:metabolism*
D001427:Bacterial Toxins; D037521:Virulence Factors
Staphylococcus aureus; membrane proteins; pore-forming toxins; toxin receptors