Bacterial surface polysaccharide plays a critical role in

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

For all major causative agents of meningitis that are extracellular (and these are the major ones), the capsule (polysaccharide) is important for successful hematogenous survival to reach the BBB and using different mechanisms to enter the central nervous system; examples include the yeast Cryptococcus, meningitis-causing strains of Haemophilus influenzae (predominantly with type b capsule), Neisseria meningitidis, and Streptococcus pneumoniae. All of these causative agents have polysaccharide capsules that allow survival in the bloodstream in an immunologically naive individual so they can reach the blood-brain barrier. The major virulence factors in urinary tract and ascending urinary tract infections are pili or adhesions that attach to the uroepithelium. Mycoplasma does not have a capsule.

Bacterial Surface Polysaccharide Plays a Critical Role in