Table 2.
Representative bacterial phospholipases and sphingomyelinases that contribute to virulence.
| Bacteria | Toxin/Enzyme | Enzyme Class | Substrate Specificity | Role in Pathogenicity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bacillus anthracis | SMase PI-PLC | SMC, PLC | SM, PI, PC | macrophage associated growth of B. anthracis, bacterial escape from phagosome |
| Bacillus cereus | SMase | SMC | SM | evasion of macrophage |
| PLC | PLC | PC, PE, PS | hemolysis | |
| Clostridium novyi | γ-toxin | PLC | PC, PE, PI, LPC, PG, SM | myonecrosis |
| Clostridium perfringens | α-toxin | PLC, SMC | PC, PE, PI, PG, PS, SM | gas gangrene |
| Corynebacterium pseudotuberculosis | SMD | SM, LPC | platelet aggregation, intravascular coagulation, endothelial hyperpermeability, bacterial spreading | |
| Helicobacter pylori | SMC | SM | apoptosis in gastric cells | |
| PldA1 | PLA2 | PC | hemolysis, bacterial survival and growth at low pH | |
| Legionella pneumophila | PlaB | PLA2 | PC, PG | hemolysis, destruction of lung surfactant |
| VipD/PatA | PLA2 | PC, LPC | establishment of bacterial niche | |
| Listeria monocytogenes | PLC-B | PLC, SMC | PC, PE, PS, SM | bacterial escape from phagosome bacterial cell to cell spreading |
| PLC-A | PLC | PI | ||
| Mycobacterium tuberculosis | PLC-A, PLC-B, PLC-C, PLC-D | acid phosphatases | PC, SM | pulmonary infection, necrosis of alveolar macrophages |
| Pseudomonas aeruginosa | PLC-H | acid phosphatases | PC, LPC, PE, PG, SM | cytotoxic to human monocytes and endothelial cells, hemolysis, platelet aggregation and thrombosis |
| Pseudomonas aeruginosa | ExoU | PLA2 | PC, PE, PA, PI | focal adhesion disruption, cytoskeleton alteration, inflammatory response |
| Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium | SseJ | PLA1 and GCATase | endosomal tabulation and establishment of bacterial intracellular niche | |
| Staphylococcus aureus | β-toxin | SMC | SM, LPC | bacterial survival in neutrophils, cytotoxic to neutrophils and monocytes |
| PI-LPI | PLC | PI, LPI | bacterial survival in neutrophils | |
| Streptococcus pyogenes | SlaA | PLA2 | PC, PE, PS, LPC | bacterial adherence to host cells, cytotoxicity |
PC, phosphatidylcholine; PE, phosphatidylethanolamine; PG, phosphatidylglycerol; PI, phosphatidylinositol; PS, phosphatidylserine; PLC, phospholipase C; LPC, lysophosphatidylcholine; LPI, lysophosphatidylinositol; SM, sphingomyelin; SMC sphingomyelinase C; SMD, sphingomyelinase D; GCATase, cholesterol acyl transferase.