Life strategy of facultatively intracellular pathogenic bacteria

Facultative intracellular patogenes have the ability to grow and survive inside and also outside of cell. This is giving them a selective advatage and also better access to nutrients, protection from extracellular components of immune system and variable conditions outside of the cell. Bacteria Francisella tularensis and Listeria monocytogenes are able to resist the defence mechanisms of immune system, enter the macrophages and non-profesional phagocytes for example hepatocytes or endothelium, prevent bactericidal processes in phagosome, replicate in cytosol and resist cell death processes until they are ready to leave the infected cell and spread to another cell. For this displacement between cells is Listeria monocytogenes using actin, whereas in Francisella tularensis the mechanism is not entirely clear. The description of the mechanism of these processes in pathogens Francisella tularensis and Listeria monocytogenes is the subject of this bachelor thesis. Key words: bacterial pathogen, facultative, intracellular, Francisella tularensis, Listeria monocytogene