The duality of virulence and transmissibility in Neisseria meningitidis

Neisseria meningitidis is a commensal bacterium of the human nasopharynx that occasionally provokes invasive disease. Carriage strains of N. meningitidis are heterogeneous, more frequent in nature and are transmitted among carriers. Disease is not a part of this transmission cycle and is caused by v...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Trends in Microbiology 2002-08, Vol.10 (8), p.376-382
Main Authors: Taha, Muhamed-Kheir, Deghmane, Ala-Eddine, Antignac, Aude, Zarantonelli, Maria Leticia, Larribe, Mireille, Alonso, Jean-Michel
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bacteriology
Carrier State
Carrier State - microbiology
Diversity
DNA exchange
Evolution
Genetic Variation
Humans
Life Sciences
Meningococcal Infections
Meningococcal Infections - microbiology
Meningococcal Infections - physiopathology
Meningococcal Infections - transmission
Microbiology and Parasitology
Nasopharynx
Nasopharynx - microbiology
Neisseria meningitidis
Neisseria meningitidis - classification
Neisseria meningitidis - genetics
Neisseria meningitidis - pathogenicity
Transmission
Virulence
Virulence - genetics
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Summary:Neisseria meningitidis is a commensal bacterium of the human nasopharynx that occasionally provokes invasive disease. Carriage strains of N. meningitidis are heterogeneous, more frequent in nature and are transmitted among carriers. Disease is not a part of this transmission cycle and is caused by virulent strains. N. meningitidis is highly variable and variants that are modified in their virulence and/or transmissibility are continually generated. These events probably occur frequently, thus explaining not only the heterogeneous nature of meningococcal populations in carriers but probably also the evolutionary success of this human-restricted bacterium. In Neisseria meningitidis, disease is not a part of the transmission cycle. For this human-restricted pathogen, transmissibility and virulence are not coupled and transmissibility alone seems to be responsible for its evolutionary success.
ISSN:0966-842X
1878-4380
DOI:10.1016/S0966-842X(02)02402-2