Friend or Foe? The Role of the Host Cytoskeleton in Cellular Responses to Bacterial Pore Forming Toxins

Abstract

Bacterial pore forming toxins (PFTs) are transmembrane proteins
produced by pathogenic bacteria that increase infection severity
in several instances. PFTs assemble into nano-sized pores on the host
plasma membrane, making it permeable to ions and small molecules.
As a response to PFTs, the host cell engages in cytoskeleton-mediated
repair mechanisms to overcome the damage inflicted to its plasma
membrane, and to maintain cellular homeostasis. However, PFTs themselves
modulate the cytoskeleton in an attempt to escape host immune
responses. Here, we review the changes that PFTs effect on the host
cytoskeleton and how the host cell responds to this attack via cytoskeleton-
associated pathways.