[Adherence of enteropathogenic "Escherichia coli" to mononuclear cells from human blood (author's transl)]

Two toxigenic strains of Escherichia coli possessing a colonization factor antigen (CFA) respectively CFA/I and CFA/II, were studied for adherence to mononuclear cells from human blood of 12 subjects. Significant differences were observed between these two strains in their ability to adhere, using as control strains their laboratory-passed derivatives which no longer possess CFA. Differences were observed in bacterial adhesion ability of mononuclear cells from different subjects but, in the whole, CFA+ bacteria were able to adhere to few cells from each subject only. These results are in opposition to the hypothesis that it is conceivable that histocompatibility antigens expressed on cells play a role in the attachment of bacteria as the first step in an infection.