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Staphylococcus aureus isolates associated with necrotizing pneumonia bind to basement membrane type I and IV

Sophie de Bentzmann1, Anne Tristan, Jerome Etienne

  • 1Laboratoire d'Ingenierie des Systemes Macromoleculaires, Unite Propre de Recherche 9027, Marseille, France.

The Journal of Infectious Diseases
|September 21, 2004
PubMed

Insights

Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL)-positive Staphylococcus aureus strains bind more strongly to damaged airway tissues than PVL-negative strains. This binding is linked to collagen and laminin, suggesting a role in necrotizing pneumonia development.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Pulmonology
  • Pathogenesis

Background:

  • Community-acquired necrotizing pneumonia is a severe lung infection.
  • Panton-Valentine leukocidin (PVL)-positive Staphylococcus aureus (PPSA) strains are associated with severe pneumonia.
  • The mechanisms by which PPSA colonize and damage lung tissue are not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the binding characteristics of PPSA to airway structures.
  • To determine if PVL influences bacterial adherence to extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins and airway epithelium.
  • To explore potential mechanisms of airway damage by S. aureus.

Main Methods:

  • Examining PPSA and PVL-negative S. aureus (PNSA) strains.
  • Assessing bacterial binding to ECM proteins, human airway epithelial cells (HAECs), and ex vivo human airway mucosa.
  • Analyzing the role of specific bacterial components and toxins.

Main Results:

  • PPSA strains showed increased binding affinity to damaged airway epithelium and basement membrane compared to PNSA strains.
  • PPSA binding correlated with affinity for type I and IV collagens and laminin, linked to the cna gene.
  • Neither recombinant PVL nor culture supernatants from PPSA/PNSA strains caused significant HAEC damage, suggesting a non-PVL exoprotein's role.

Conclusions:

  • Epithelial damage, potentially from viral infections or non-PVL S. aureus products, may facilitate PPSA binding to exposed ECM proteins like collagen and laminin.
  • PVL may play a role later in the pathogenesis of necrotizing pneumonia after initial bacterial adherence.

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