WIKIPEDIA, GRAHAM BEARDS
Group B Streptococcus, a bacteria linked to preterm birth and newborn infections, deploys a toxic pigment molecule that targets immune cells in order to infect the placenta and amniotic sac, according to new research.
In a study published this month (October 14) in Science Immunology, University of Washington researchers observed pregnant macaques infected with strains of GBS, some with strains that could produce the pigment and some with strains that could not, finding an association between presence of the pigment and problems during birth.
The role of this toxic pigment, the researchers found, is to puncture the membrane of neutrophils, immune cells that trap pathogens in sticky expulsions of DNA and chromatin. The pigment “doesn’t make a nice defined hole,” study coauthor Lakshmi Rajagopal told ...
