Adhesion of Corynebacterium renale and Corynebacterium pilosum to the epithelial cells of various parts of the bovine urinary tract from the renal pelvis to vulva.

The various parts of the bovine urinary tract, the renal pelvis, the ureter, the urinary bladder, the urethra, the vaginal vestibule and the vulva, were examined for the capacity of the epithelial cells to bind Corynebacterium renale and C. pilosum. C. renale adhered best to the epithelial cells of the vulva, and then to those of the ureter and renal pelvis. C. pilosum also adhered best to the epithelial cells of the vulva, followed by those of the vaginal vestibule. The results indicate that the most important target tissue for these bacteria may be the vulva, and the results correlate with the fact that C. renale frequently causes pyelonephritis and ureteritis, while C. pilosum causes the same diseases less frequently and behaves like normal flora of the vaginal vestibule.