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Activation of the contact-phase system on bacterial surfaces—a clue to serious complications in infectious diseases

Nature Medicine volume 4, pages 298–302 (1998)Cite this article

Abstract

Fever, hypotension and bleeding disorders are common symptoms of sepsis and septic shock. The activation of the contact-phase system is thought to contribute to the development of these severe disease states by triggering proinflammatory and procoagulatory cascades; however, the underlying molecular mechanisms are obscure. Here we report that the components of the contact-phase system are assembled on the surface of Escherichia coli and Salmonella through their specific interactions with fibrous bacterial surface proteins, curli and fimbriae. As a consequence, the proinflammatory pathway is activated through the release of bradykinin, a potent inducer of fever, pain and hypotension. Absorption of contact-phase proteins and fibrinogen by bacterial surface proteins depletes relevant coagulation factors and causes a hypocoagulatory state. Thus, the complex interplay of microbe surface proteins and host contact-phase factors may contribute to the symptoms of sepsis and septic shock.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Lund University, P.O. Box 94, S-221 00, Lund, Sweden

    Heiko Herwald, Matthias Mörgelin, Arne Olsén & Lars Björck

  2. Microbiology and Tumor Biology Center (MTC), Karolinska Institute, P.O. Box 280, S-171 77, Stockholm, Sweden

    Mikael Rhen

  3. Department of Clinical Chemistry, Lund University, University Hospital, Malmö, S-20 502, Malmö, Sweden

    Björn Dahlbäck

  4. Institute of Physiological Chemistry and Pathobiochemistry, Johannes Gutenberg University at Mainz, Duesbergweg 6, D-55099, Mainz, Germany

    Werner Müller-Esterl

Authors
  1. Heiko Herwald
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Herwald, H., Mörgelin, M., Olsén, A. et al. Activation of the contact-phase system on bacterial surfaces—a clue to serious complications in infectious diseases. Nat Med 4, 298–302 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm0398-298

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