Fig. 5

Model for PMN chemotaxis to infectious CNS foci during neurolisteriosis (large dotted box). Lm gains access to the CNS and infects neural cells (neurons, astrocytes, microglia) or resides extracellularly in the neuroparenchyma. PMN that entered the CNS compartment following transmigration across the BBB are unresponsive to extracellular bacteria or infected neurons and astrocytes (small dotted box), but are recruited to infectious foci by chemotactic factors of infected or activated microglia. Attracted PMN likely phagocytose Lm on site. As the latter step was not investigated in this study, it is not included in the large box. Created with BioRender.com