Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections of man: integration of attachment mechanism, cellular responses and clinical manifestations.

Research advances of recent years are permitting new understanding of M. pneumoniae disease pathogenesis, although our knowledge remains incomplete. Colonization of the respiratory tract mucosa, mediated by an attachment protein, leads to specialized cell injury and altered muco-ciliary clearance. Pulmonary cellular infiltrates and airway exudates are a mixture of both non-specific and specific host immune responsiveness to the mycoplasma. It is now possible to begin integration of the organism's molecular biology and the clinical manifestations of infection.