Neisseria miningitidis (or meningococcus) infects cells of the central nervous system and can cause meningitis. However, since meningococcus is a human-specific pathogen, the significance of common in vivo models is very limited. Here we establish an infection model based on human brain endothelial cells, which in turn are differentiated from induced pluripotent stem cells. Through a series of experiments we can show that this model reflects several aspects of the situation in human patients and thus has great potential for an improved understanding of the interaction between meningococci and human host cells.
For further information please follow this link: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2019.01181/full
