A Model for Studying the Biology of Parasitism: Chlamydia psittaci and Mouse Fibroblasts (L Cells)

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Abstract
In diseases caused by intracellular parasites, the complex relationship between multicellular hosts and unicellular parasites may be simplified by employing uniform populations of single susceptible cells as the “hosts.” The interaction of the obligate intracellular bacteria of the genus Chlamydia (which includes the causative agents of psittacosis and trachoma) with populations of cultured mouse fibroblasts (L cells) has been analyzed quantitatively. However, the relevance of this model to natural infections caused by chlamydiae has not been demonstrated.