Differential Attachment by Piliated and Nonpiliated Neisseria gonorrhoeae to Human Sperm

Abstract

Piliated type 1 Neisseria gonorrhoeae attached to 50% of human sperm after incubation of mixtures in vitro for 15 min at 35 C. In contrast, nonpiliated type 4 N. gonorrhoeae attached to only 23% of sperm. Similar results were obtained with three different strains of N. gonorrhoeae. Treatment with heat or formaldehyde to kill bacteria did not affect the amount of attachment by piliated or nonpiliated types. Escherichia coli and N. subflava, other species of piliated bacteria, attached to about 40% of sperm, and the nonpiliated species N. meningitidis and N. catarrhalis attached to a comparable number of sperm, as did type 4 N. gonorrhoeae. Prior incubation of type 1 N. gonorrhoeae with purified antibody prepared against gonococcal pili reduced the percentage of sperm with attached bacteria to the same level as that for nonpiliated type 4 gonococci. Similar treatment of other piliated organisms or of nonpiliated Neisseria did not affect the attachment of the bacteria to sperm.

Gonococcal lipooligosaccharide is a ligand for the asialoglycoprotein receptor on human sperm

“…Studies with primary human urethral epithelial cells have shown that this mutant is significantly less invasive than its wild-type counterpart (unpublished data). Gonococci associating with human sperm cells were observed years ago, although the bacterial and/or host molecular mechanisms contributing to this interaction have not been characterized (James-Holmquest et al, 1974). The expression of two related polypeptides, H1 and H2, comprising human hepatic ASGP-R, with molecular weights of 46 and 52 kDa, respectively, has been reported by others .…”

“…The hypothesis that gonococci might attach to human sperm and subsequently become transported through the male and female reproductive systems was investigated almost 30 years ago (Howard, 1971). A few years later, observation of specific attachment of piliated and non-piliated gonococci to human sperm cells suggested that factors other than pili are involved in the attachment process (James-Holmquest et al, 1974).…”

Pili on meningococci from primary cultures of nasopharyngeal carriers and cerebrospinal fluid of patients with acute disease.

“…(4) reported that only cells from the virulent colony types were piliated suggesting that pili may be linked to the property of virulence in the gonococcus . Furthermore, the piliated gonococci were found to have a greater ability to adhere to both tissue culture cells (9) and sperm cell surfaces (3), both of which could give these cells a selective advantage in the urinary tract . Other data suggest that pili may also aid this bacterium in resisting phagocytosis (7).…”

Coxiella burnetii penetration into the reproductive system of male mice, promoting sexual transmission of infection

“…IgM (A) and IgG (B) antibodies were detected by a dot-ELISA. numbers to the spermatozoal tails than to the heads (14)(15)(16)30).…”