Cytotoxic effect of a T-strain mycoplasma (Ureaplasma urealyticum) on cultured normal human cells (wi-38)

Detection of mycoplasmas in urethral swabs from HIV-1 infected patients and control individuals using culture techniques and polymerase chain reaction

The objective of the present study was to determine the prevalence of certain mycoplasma species, i.e., Mycoplasma hominis, Ureaplasma urealyticum and Mycoplasma penetrans, in urethral swabs from HIV-1 infected patients compared to swabs from a control group. Mycoplasmas were detected by routine culture techniques and by the Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) technique, using 16SrRNA generic primers of conserved region and Mycoplasma penetrans specific primers. The positivity rates obtained with the two methods were comparable. Nevertheless, PCR was more sensitive, while the culture techniques allowed the quantification of the isolates. The results showed no significant difference (p < 0.05) in positivity rates between the methods used for mycoplasma detection.

Ureaplasma diversum infection in vitro alters prostaglandin E2 and prostaglandin F2a production by bovine endometrial cells without affecting cell viability

Bovine epithelial and stromal cells of the endometrium were inoculated with Ureaplasma diversum, pathogenic strain 2312, at 10(6) or 10(3) color-changing units (ccu)/ml in the presence of 1% fetal bovine serum (depleted of steroids by dextran-charcoal treatment) to assess the effect of infection on prostaglandin biosynthesis. When the inoculum of U. diversum was 10(6) ccu/ml, the concentration of U. diversum in the culture medium decreased with time. U. diversum was found on the epithelial and stromal cell monolayers, increasing in titer 100-fold, indicating that attachment and eventually growth occurred. When the inoculum was 10(3) ccu/ml, the titer of U. diversum remained the same or increased in the supernatant and increased on epithelial and stromal cells. The effect of infection was evaluated by measurement of the primary prostaglandin produced by each cell type, prostaglandin F2a for epithelial cells and prostaglandin E2 for stromal cells. Infection with U. diversum significantly decreased prostaglandin F2a accumulation, by 44.7% +/- 6.0% at 10(6) ccu/ml (P < or = 0.005) and 15.8% +/- 5.3% at 10(3) ccu/ml (P < or = 0.05) in epithelial cells. Prostaglandin E2 accumulation by stromal cells was decreased by 34.0% +/- 4.0% at 10(6) ccu/ml (P < or = 0.001) and by 13.5% +/- 2.7% at 10(3) ccu/ml (P < or = 0.005). Infection with 10(6) ccu/ml did not alter endometrial cell viability, as shown by protein measurement, trypan blue dye exclusion, and cell plating efficiency tests. Thus, alterations in prostaglandin production were not due to cell deterioration. These observations suggest that U. diversum can alter prostaglandin E2 and prostaglandin F2a patterns in primary cultures of bovine endometrial cells without affecting cell viability.

Ureaplasma infection of cell cultures

Studies were performed to characterize the effects of ureaplasmas in HeLa, 3T6, and CV-1 cell cultures. The ureaplasmas studied were human Ureaplasma urealyticum T960 (serotype VIII), bovine U. diversum T95, simian strain T167-2, ovine strain 1202, canine strain D1M-C, and feline strains 382 and FT2-B. FT2-B was the only ureaplasma to grow in the cell free culture medium, Dulbecco modified Eagle-Earle medium containing 10% fetal bovine serum. The growth pattern of the ureaplasmas varied in the different cell cultures, but each strain grew in at least two of the cell cultures, suggesting a requirement for a product of the cell culture and for low concentrations of urea. When growth occurred, organisms grew to concentrations that approached, but did not equal, those observed in 10B broth. Most, but not all, ureaplasmas grew quickly, reaching peak titers 2 days after infection. Canine strain D1M-C did not grow in 3T6, but showed rapid growth in HeLa and CV-1 cells, killing both cultures, In some systems, e.g., U. urealyticum T960 and simian strain T167-2, the infection persisted, and ureaplasmas could be recovered from cell cultures four passages after infection, when studies were terminated. The cell culture ureaplasmas grew on T agar, but not on mycoplasma agar medium.

Genitourinary infection with Ureaplasma urealyticum in women attending a sexually transmitted diseases clinic

Ureaplasma urealyticum was detected in the cervix of 49·9% and in the urine of 47·7% of women attending a department of genitourinary medicine. Isolation of U urealyticum was not related to diagnosis, nor was there any association between the presence of the organism and any symptoms or signs of genital tract disease. Fewer organisms were detected in the cervix of women who had a concurrent infection with Chlamydia trachomatis than in women who had not. A pathological role for U urealyticum has not been established.

Behavior of Mycoplasma hominis in a human diploid cell culture system

The behavior of Mycoplasma hominis in normal human embryonic lung fibroblast (HAIN-55) cell cultures was investigated. Multiplication patterns of cell-associated mycoplasmas and of extracellular mycoplasmas in the HAIN-55 cultures depended upon the size of the inoculum. This relationship did not vary with the number of days the cells had been cultured, nor with the number of HAIN-55 cell passages. The maximum mycoplasmal growth was obtained with inoculum sizes of 10(5) to 10(6) colony-forming units (CFU)/ml. The recovery of mycoplasmas decreased rapidly with inoculum size beyond 10(7) CFU/ml, and growth of the HAIN-55 cells was inhibited. Growth of the cells was also inhibited by the addition of the cytoplasmic fraction of Mycoplasma hominis.

Role of adenine in pathogenesis of Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections of tracheal epithelium

Adenine sulfate and several related compounds were evaluated for their ability to retard the cytotoxic effect which normally accompanies M. pneumoniae infections of hamster tracheal explants. Adenine sulfate, at the 0.01 mM level, was found to exert a significant protective effect. Little or no ciliostasis or loss of cell viability was detectable when organ cultures were infected with 10(7) CFU of virulent M. pneumoniae in the presence of the adenine supplement. Mycoplasmas grew in broth and on plastic surfaces in the presence of adenine, and no significant diminution of growth rate or cell yield was detectable. Organisms adhered to the tracheal epithelial surface regardless of the presence or absence of adenine. When explants were incubated in the presence of 14C-(8)-adenine, rinsed, and then infected with M. pneumoniae, the adenine label could be recovered from the mycoplasmas 20 h after the infection. These data are compatible with the known nucleic acid requirement of mycoplasmas and with a model which ascribes a role for purine/pyrimidine competition and/or depletion in the infective process.