Growth and effect of Neisseria gonorrhoeae in organ cultures

Abstract

The maintenance of ciliary activity in organ cultures of Fallopian tubes removed during menstrual, puerperal, and post-menopausal periods was about the same. Ciliary activity persisted in most cultures for 2 weeks and in some for a month and occasionally longer. The addition of oestradiol to the cultures did not retard the loss of ciliaryactivity. N.gonorrhoeae multiplied in all of fifteen experiments in which Fallopian tube organ cultures were studied, and in some but not all experiments involving human, chicken, and bovine embryo tracheal organ cultures. Maximum numbers of organisms, between 105 and 1010 CFU/ml., were attained 2 to 4 days after inoculation of Fallopian tube cultures and lesser numbers were usually found in human, chicken, and bovine embryo tracheal cultures, indicating partial species and tissue specificity. The organisms also grew in medium after it had been 'conditioned' by prior contact with Fallopian tissue. Loss of ciliary activity was always observed 2 to 7 days after inoculation of Fallopian tube cultures and there was histological evidence of damage. In the tracheal cultures, loss of ciliary activity was seen most frequently in those of chicken origin. The organ culture system, particularly that involving Fallopian tubes, would seem to provide a useful model for studying various aspects of N. gonorrhoeae virulence.