Determinants of Opa-CEACAM interactions

Due to the prevalence of antibiotic use in recent decades, there has been a rise in antibiotic resistant bacterial infections. Bacterial gonorrhea is one such infection and the responsible bacterium, Neisseria gonorrhoeae, has reached superbug status with strains that are resistant to all available antibiotics. Neisseria triggers uptake by human cells by binding to carcinoembyronic antigen-like cell adhesion molecules (CEACAMs) on the surface of host cells via opacity associated proteins (Opa) located in the outer membrane of Neisseria.