Lactoferrin blocks the initial host cell attachment mechanism of Enteropathogenic E. coli (EPEC).

Abstract

Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (EPEC) is a major cause of infantile diarrhea. The initial event in pathogenesis of EPEC and many other bacterial enteropathogens (Shigella, Salmonella, Yersinia, and Shiga toxin-producing E. coli) involves production and translocation of bacterial proteins through a needle complex. In EPEC, multimers of E. coli secreted protein A (EspA) assemble into a transiently expressed tube between the bacteria and the host cell. Secreted proteins (EspB, EspD, and others) are introduced into host cells via this conduit, triggering cytoskeletal events that lead to the intimate attachment of bacteria to the epithelial surface, effacement of host microvilli and pedestal formation [“attaching and effacing” lesion] (Vallance & Finlay 2000; Sekiya et al. 2001).KeywordsHuman MilkHuman LactoferrinInfantile DiarrheaPedestal FormationRecombinant Human LactoferrinThese keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.