Cultivation of Chlamydia trachomatis in HaCaT cells

Objective To investigate the feasibility of C.trachomatis culture in HaCaT human keratinocytes.Methods According to the procedure for C.trachomatis culture in McCoy cells,clinical swab specimens and standard strains of C.trachomatis serotype E were inoculated into HaCaT cells.Iodine staining,a fluorescent monoclonal antibody test and PCR amplification of the endogenous plasmid of C.trachomatis were performed to detect the growth of C.trachomatis in HaCaT cells.Five passages of subculture were carried out for the standard strain of C.trachomatis serotype E in HaCaT cells,and inclusion bodies were counted after each passage.One-factor analysis of variance was conducted by using the software SPSS17 to determine if C.trachomatis was propagated in HaCaT cells.Results Iodine staining showed typical inclusion bodies of C.trachomatis in the cytoplasm of HaCaT cells.Yellow fluorescence-labeled granules were observed in the HaCaT cells under a microscope.Endogenous plasmids of C.rachomatis were successfully amplified by PCR from the infected HaCaT cells.The number of inclusions in HaCaT cells gradually increased at passage 1 through 5.Conclusions C.trachomatis is successfully cultivated in HaCaT cells in vitro,and the standard strain of C.trachomatis serotype E can propagate in HaCaT cells.