Deconstructing the Chlamydial Cell Wall

Klöckner, Anna; Bühl, Henrike; Viollier, Patrick; Henrichfreise, Beate

doi:10.1007/82_2016_34

Scientific article

English

Deconstructing the Chlamydial Cell Wall

Contributors

Klöckner, Anna; Bühl, Henrike; Viollier, Patrick

; Henrichfreise, Beate

Published in

Current topics in microbiology and immunology

Publication date

2016

Abstract

The evolutionary separated Gram-negative Chlamydiales show a biphasic life cycle and replicate exclusively within eukaryotic host cells. Members of the genus Chlamydia are responsible for many acute and chronic diseases in humans, and Chlamydia-related bacteria are emerging pathogens. We revisit past efforts to detect cell wall material in Chlamydia and Chlamydia-related bacteria in the context of recent breakthroughs in elucidating the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms of the chlamydial cell wall biosynthesis. In this review, we also discuss the role of cell wall biosynthesis in chlamydial FtsZ-independent cell division and immune modulation. In the past, penicillin susceptibility of an invisible wall was referred to as the "chlamydial anomaly." In light of new mechanistic insights, chlamydiae may now emerge as model systems to understand how a minimal and modified cell wall biosynthetic machine supports bacterial cell division and how cell wall-targeting beta-lactam antibiotics can also act bacteriostatically rather than bactericidal. On the heels of these discussions, we also delve into the effects of other cell wall antibiotics in individual chlamydial lineages.

UNIGE affiliation entities

Faculté de médecine / Section de médecine fondamentale / Département de microbiologie et médecine moléculaire

UNIGE research groups

Régulation du cycle cellulaire dans C.crescentus, une bactérie asymétrique (895)

Citation (ISO format)

KLÖCKNER, Anna et al. Deconstructing the Chlamydial Cell Wall. In: Current topics in microbiology and immunology, 2016. doi: 10.1007/82_2016_34

Article (Published version)

Identifiers

PID : unige:89084
DOI : 10.1007/82_2016_34
PMID : 27726004

Journal ISSN

0070-217X

591views

0downloads

Creation

15/10/2016 20:49:00

First validation

15/10/2016 20:49:00

Update

13/10/2025 20:32:12

Status update

15/03/2023 00:57:12

Last indexation

02/11/2026 16:34:29

Deconstructing the Chlamydial Cell Wall

Contributors

Published in

Publication date

Abstract

UNIGE affiliation entities

UNIGE research groups

Citation (ISO format)

Main files (1)

Identifiers

Journal ISSN

Technical informations

Creation

First validation

Update

Status update

Last indexation