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. 2012 Oct 9;7(10):e47069. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0047069

Figure 5. Adhesion behaviour of bacteria expressing invasin wild-type or HA-tagged variants and their ability to induce IL-8 secretion in HeLa cells.

Figure 5

(A) Adhesion behaviour. Invasin producing E. coli strains were tested for their ability to mediate adhesion to HeLa cells. Bacteria were allowed to adhere to a HeLa monolayer grown on coverslips and imaged with a brightfield microscope. Only those bacteria producing invasin constructs that properly display their C-terminus on the bacterial surface can adhere. (B) Induction of IL8 secretion. Supernatants of HeLa cells that were stimulated with E. coli strains that produced invasin wild-type protein and HA-tagged variants thereof were assayed for the presence of IL-8. Only strains that properly expose their passenger domain on the bacterial surface are able to induce significant IL-8 secretion.