Fig 1.
Direct anti-microbial mechanisms from neutrophils and the GAS counterattack.
Neutrophils are equipped with multiple anti-infective strategies including the bacterial uptake (phagocytosis), the phagolysosomal degradation of bacteria via reactive oxygen species (oxidative burst), the release of antimicrobial molecules (degranulation), and the formation of a web-like structure composed of chromatin, histones, and antimicrobials (neutrophil extracellular traps [NETs]). GAS is equipped with a magnitude of neutrophil resistance factors (grey boxes) allowing the pathogen to uniquely counteract each anti-bacterial strategy of neutrophils.
Table 1.
Neutrophil anti-bacterial functions subverted by GAS.
GAS produces a large suite of virulence factors to counteract specific neutrophil clearance mechanisms during the pathogenesis of invasive infection.