Bacterial adhesin

Adhesins are produced by bacterial factors which allow the bacteria to adhere to structures and cells of the host. The adhesion with the help of adhesins prevents the removal or the washing away of the bacterium and is therefore a prerequisite for colonization and infection of the host. The expression of adhesins depends on the environmental conditions in some bacterial species and regulated.

Some induce adhesins by binding to lectins uptake by the host cell (e.g., Yersinia enterocolitica, Shigella flexneri ). By adhesins and their specificity for specific proteins on host cells including the organotropism can explain some bacteria.

Examples

P fimbriae allow uropathogenic Escherichia coli strains to adhere to the urothelium also.

• Pertactin of Bordetella pertussis mediated adhesion to bronchial mucosa.
• F protein enables the adhesion of Streptococcus pyogenes to fibronectin.
• Staphylococcus aureus adheres to fibronectin via fibronectin -binding protein.