Advances in lipid metabolism during Chlamydia infection / 中华微生物学和免疫学杂志

ABSTRACT

Chlamydia, a gram-negative obligate intracellular pathogen, is a major cause of human reproductive tract, eye and respiratory tract infections. It replicates in a special membrane-binding chamber called inclusion and survives in the host′s hostile intracellular environment through secreting effectors, but requires host-derived lipids to grow and develop in the cells. Emerging evidences suggest that Chlamydia has evolved a variety of strategies to meet its lipid needs by interacting with host cell compartments and redirecting the transport pathway to its intracellular niche. This paper briefly described the pathway for obtaining host lipids and the mechanism of lipid metabolic during Chlamydia infection.