To die or not to die: Programmed cell death responses and their interactions with Coxiella burnetii infection

What is it about?

Coxiella burnetii is an obligate intracellular, macrophage-tropic bacterium and the causative agent of the zoonotic disease Q fever. In this review, we summarize the relationships between C. burnetii and the cellular processes of apoptosis, pyroptosis, and autophagy. Bacterial modulation of these pathways has been implicated in the maintenance of infection, and discussion of what is known regarding host-bacterial interactions will open new research questions aimed at understanding and combating this highly infectious pathogen.

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