Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Infection and Immunity logoLink to Infection and Immunity
. 1978 Aug;21(2):392–397. doi: 10.1128/iai.21.2.392-397.1978

In vitro adhesion of Escherichia coli to porcine small intestinal epithelial cells: pili as adhesive factors.

R E Isaacson, P C Fusco, C C Brinton, H W Moon
PMCID: PMC422008  PMID: 357285

Abstract

Escherichia coli strains with pili (K99 or 987P) known to facilitate intestinal colonization adhered in vitro to porcine intestinal epithelial cells. These strains adhered equally to both ileal and jejunal epithelial cells. A laboratory E. coli strain that has type 1 pili also adhered to porcine intestinal epithelial cells. When nonpiliated cells derived from 987P+, K99+, or type 1 pilus+ strains were used for in vitro adhesion assays, they failed to adhere. The attachment of piliated bacteria to epithelial cells was a saturable process that plateaued at 30 to 40 bacterial cells attached per epithelial cell. Competitive inhibition of bacterial cell attachment to epithelial cells with purified pili showed that only purified 987P competed against the 987P+ strain and only purified type 1 pili competed against the type 1 pilus+ strain. Competition between a K99+ strain and K99 was not consistently achieved. K99+, 987P+, and type 1 pilus+ bacteria could be prevented from adhering to epithelial cells by Fab fragments specific for K99, 987P, or type 1 pili, respectively. Fab fragments specific for non-K99 bacterial surface antigens did not inhibit adhesion of the K99+ strain. It is concluded that adhesion of E. coli to porcine intestinal epithelial cells in vitro is mediated by pili and that the epithelial cells used apparently had different receptors for different pili.

Full text

PDF
392

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Arbuckle J. B. The location of Escherichia coli in the pig intestine. J Med Microbiol. 1970 May;3(2):333–340. doi: 10.1099/00222615-3-2-333. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Bertschinger H. U., Moon H. W., Whipp S. C. Association of Escherichia coli with the small intestinal epithelium. I. Comparison of enteropathogenic and nonenteropathogenic porcine strains in pigs. Infect Immun. 1972 Apr;5(4):595–605. doi: 10.1128/iai.5.4.595-605.1972. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Brinton C. C., Jr The structure, function, synthesis and genetic control of bacterial pili and a molecular model for DNA and RNA transport in gram negative bacteria. Trans N Y Acad Sci. 1965 Jun;27(8):1003–1054. doi: 10.1111/j.2164-0947.1965.tb02342.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Burrows M. R., Sellwood R., Gibbons R. A. Haemagglutinating and adhesive properties associated with the K99 antigen of bovine strains of Escherichia coli. J Gen Microbiol. 1976 Oct;96(2):269–275. doi: 10.1099/00221287-96-2-269. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Guinée P. A., Jansen W. H., Agterberg C. M. Detection of the K99 antigen by means of agglutination and immunoelectrophoresis in Escherichia coli isolates from calves and its correlation with entertoxigenicity. Infect Immun. 1976 May;13(5):1369–1377. doi: 10.1128/iai.13.5.1369-1377.1976. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Guinée P. A., Veldkamp J., Jansen W. H. Improved minca medium for the detection of K99 antigen in calf enterotoxigenic strains of Escherichia coli. Infect Immun. 1977 Feb;15(2):676–678. doi: 10.1128/iai.15.2.676-678.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Hohmann A., Wilson M. R. Adherence of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli to intestinal epithelium in vivo. Infect Immun. 1975 Oct;12(4):866–880. doi: 10.1128/iai.12.4.866-880.1975. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Isaacson R. E. K99 surface antigen of Escherichia coli: purification and partial characterization. Infect Immun. 1977 Jan;15(1):272–279. doi: 10.1128/iai.15.1.272-279.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Isaacson R. E., Konisky J. Studies of the regulation of colicin Ib synthesis. II. The synthesis of col Ib-P9 specific RNA in vivo. Mol Gen Genet. 1974;132(3):223–232. doi: 10.1007/BF00269395. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Isaacson R. E., Nagy B., Moon H. W. Colonization of porcine small intestine by Escherichia coli: colonization and adhesion factors of pig enteropathogens that lack K88. J Infect Dis. 1977 Apr;135(4):531–539. doi: 10.1093/infdis/135.4.531. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Jones G. W., Rutter J. M. Contribution of the K88 antigen of Escherichia coli to enteropathogenicity; protection against disease by neutralizing the adhesive properties of K88 antigen. Am J Clin Nutr. 1974 Dec;27(12):1441–1449. doi: 10.1093/ajcn/27.12.1441. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Jones G. W., Rutter J. M. Role of the K88 antigen in the pathogenesis of neonatal diarrhea caused by Escherichia coli in piglets. Infect Immun. 1972 Dec;6(6):918–927. doi: 10.1128/iai.6.6.918-927.1972. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Moon H. W., Nagy B., Isaacson R. E., Orskov I. Occurrence of K99 antigen on Escherichia coli isolated from pigs and colonization of pig ileum by K99+ enterotoxigenic E. coli from calves and pigs. Infect Immun. 1977 Feb;15(2):614–620. doi: 10.1128/iai.15.2.614-620.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Nagy B., Moon H. W., Isaacson R. E. Colonization of porcine intestine by enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli: selection of piliated forms in vivo, adhesion of piliated forms to epithelial cells in vitro, and incidence of a pilus antigen among porcine enteropathogenic E. coli. Infect Immun. 1977 Apr;16(1):344–352. doi: 10.1128/iai.16.1.344-352.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Nagy B., Moon H. W., Isaacson R. E. Colonization of porcine small intestine by Escherichia coli: ileal colonization and adhesion by pig enteropathogens that lack K88 antigen and by some acapsular mutants. Infect Immun. 1976 Apr;13(4):1214–1220. doi: 10.1128/iai.13.4.1214-1220.1976. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. ORSKOV I., ORSKOV F., SOJKA W. J., LEACH J. M. Simultaneous occurrence of E. coli B and Lantigens in strains from diseased swine. Influence of cultivation temperature. Two new E. coli Kantigens: K 87 and K 88. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand. 1961;53:404–422. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. PORTER R. R. The hydrolysis of rabbit y-globulin and antibodies with crystalline papain. Biochem J. 1959 Sep;73:119–126. doi: 10.1042/bj0730119. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Sellwood R., Gibbons R. A., Jones G. W., Rutter J. M. Adhesion of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli to pig intestinal brush borders: the existence of two pig phenotypes. J Med Microbiol. 1975 Aug;8(3):405–411. doi: 10.1099/00222615-8-3-405. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. Swaney L. M., Liu Y. P., To C. M., To C. C., Ippen-Ihler K., Brinton C. C., Jr Isolation and characterization of Escherichia coli phase variants and mutants deficient in type 1 pilus production. J Bacteriol. 1977 Apr;130(1):495–505. doi: 10.1128/jb.130.1.495-505.1977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Wilson M. R., Hohmann A. W. Immunity to Escherichia coli in pigs: adhesion of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli to isolated intestinal epithelial cells. Infect Immun. 1974 Oct;10(4):776–782. doi: 10.1128/iai.10.4.776-782.1974. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Infection and Immunity are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES