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Enterococcus faecalis : an overlooked cell invader

Published inMicrobiology and molecular biology reviews, vol. 88, no. 3, e0006924
Publication date2024-09-26
First online date2024-09-06
Abstract

Enterococcus faecalis andEnterococcus faeciumare human pathobionts that exhibit a dual lifestyle as commensal and pathogenic bacteria. The pathogenic lifestyle is associated with specific conditions involving host susceptibility and intestinal overgrowth or the use of a medical device. Although the virulence ofE. faeciumappears to benefit from its antimicrobial resistance,E. faecalisis recognized for its higher pathogenic potential.E. faecalishas long been considered a predominantly extracellular pathogen; it adheres to and is taken up by a wide range of mammalian cells, albeit with less efficiency than classical intracellular enteropathogens. Carbohydrate structures, rather than proteinaceous moieties, are likely to be primarily involved in the adhesion ofE. faecalisto epithelial cells. Consistently, few adhesins have been implicated in the adhesion ofE. faecalisto epithelial cells. On the host side, very little is known about cognate receptors, except for the role of glycosaminoglycans during macrophage infection. Several lines of evidence indicate thatE. faecalisinternalization may involve a zipper-like mechanism as well as a macropinocytosis pathway. Conversely,E. faecaliscan use several strategies to prevent engulfment in phagocytes. However, the bacterial and host mechanisms underlying cell infection byE. faecalisare still in their infancy. The most recent striking finding is the existence of an intracellular lifestyle whereE. faecaliscan replicate within a variety of host cells. In this review, we summarize and discuss the current knowledge ofE. faecalis-host cell interactions and argue on the need for further mechanistic studies to prevent or reduce infections.

Keywords
  • Enterococcus
  • Enterococcus faecalis
  • Enterococcus faecium
  • Host-cell interactions
  • Intracellular lifestyle
Citation (ISO format)
ARCHAMBAUD, Cristel et al. Enterococcus faecalis : an overlooked cell invader. In: Microbiology and molecular biology reviews, 2024, vol. 88, n° 3, p. e0006924. doi: 10.1128/mmbr.00069-24
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Additional URL for this publicationhttps://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/mmbr.00069-24
Journal ISSN1092-2172
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