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Infection and Immunity, July 2004, p. 4210-4216, Vol. 72, No. 7
0019-9567/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/IAI.72.7.4210-4216.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

New Murine Model for the Study of Chlamydia trachomatis Genitourinary Tract Infections in Males

Sukumar Pal, Ellena M. Peterson, and Luis M. de la Maza*

<[ERROR]zaff;1[ERROR]>Department of Pathology, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, California 92697-4800

Received 2 December 2003/ Returned for modification 5 February 2004/ Accepted 30 March 2004

The lack of an experimental model has significantly limited the understanding of the pathogenesis of Chlamydia trachomatis infections in males. In an attempt to establish a model using the natural route of infection, we inoculated male mice in the meatus urethra. To establish the 50% infectious dose (ID50), C3H/HeN (H-2k) male mice were inoculated in the meatus urethra with doses ranging from 101 to 107 inclusion-forming units (IFU) of C. trachomatis mouse pneumonitis biovar (MoPn) and were euthanized at 10 days postinfection (p.i.). Approximately 50% of the animals inoculated with 5 x 104 IFU had positive cultures of the urethra, urinary bladder, epididymides, and/or testes. Subsequently, to characterize the course of the infection, a group of animals was inoculated with 106 IFU/mouse (20 times the ID50). Positive cultures from the urethra, urinary bladder, epididymides, and testes were obtained from the animals. The infection peaked in the first 2 weeks p.i. and subsequently declined over the 7 weeks of observation. C. trachomatis-specific antibodies were first detected in serum by 2 weeks p.i. and rose over the period of observation. The titers of immunoglobulin G2a (IgG2a) were 16-fold higher than those of IgG1. A lymphoproliferative assay using splenocytes and local lymph nodes showed a strong cell-mediated immune response. Levels of gamma interferon were significantly higher than those of interleukin-4 in the supernatants from stimulated lymphocytes. An acute inflammatory infiltrate consisting of polymorphonuclear leukocytes was detected in the urethra at 1 week p.i. At 3 weeks p.i., a mixed acute and chronic inflammatory infiltrate was observed in the urethra that by 5 to 6 weeks was mainly composed of mononuclear cells. Similar findings were also observed in the urinary bladder, although the inflammatory infiltrate was delayed by approximately a week relative to that in the urethra. Sections of the epididymides showed a focal acute inflammatory infiltrate at 2 weeks p.i. Immunohistochemical staining demonstrated multiple chlamydial inclusions in the epithelium of the urethra and urinary bladder. No chlamydial inclusions were observed in the epididymides or testes. In conclusion, inoculation of male mice in the meatus urethra with C. trachomatis MoPn results in an infection of the genitourinary tract that closely parallels that described in humans. This model should help to characterize the pathogenesis of chlamydial infections in males and to test therapeutic and preventive measures.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of Pathology, Medical Sciences, Room D440, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697-4800. Phone: (949) 824-7450. Fax: (949) 824-2160. E-mail: lmdelama{at}uci.edu.

Editor: A. D. O'Brien

Infection and Immunity, July 2004, p. 4210-4216, Vol. 72, No. 7
0019-9567/04/$08.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/IAI.72.7.4210-4216.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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