ADHERENCE OF PERITONITIS-CAUSING STAPHYLOCOCCI TO HUMAN PERITONEAL MESOTHELIAL CELL MONOLAYERS

The adherence of staphylococci to monolayers of human mesothelialcells was studied. Adherence of Staphylococcus aureusto mesothelial cell monolayers was 3.4-fold better than to plastic (P <.01) whereas that of Staphylococcus epidermidis was 3.o-fold less than to plastic (P <.01). Neither serum albumin nor gelatin inhibited staphylococcal binding. S. aureus adherence correlated with the amount ofcell wall protein A (r =.63, P <;.05) but not with fibronectin binding; it was significantly inhibited by the addition ofpurified cell walllipoteichoic acid (55% ± 2.7%), teichoic acid (34.5% ± 3.4%), and protein A (25.6% ± 2.9%) but not peptidoglycan. Protein A- and teichoic acid-deficient mutants adhered less well than their parent strains, and encapsulated S. aureus adhered less well than its nonencapsulated variant. Thus it seems that S. aureus but not S. epidermidis adhere well to human monothelial cells. Staphylococcal binding may involve cell wall lipoteichoic acid, teichoic acid, and protein A. © 1990 by The University of Chicago. All rights reserved.