Touching a nerve during neuroinvasion

Bacterial neuroinvasion can lead to serious and potentially life-threatening conditions, such as bacterial meningitis, where bacteria invade the protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord known as meninges and cause inflammation. Although much is known about the pathophysiology of bacterial meningitis, we have a limited understanding of how bacteria invade the brain and the role of the host immune system in this process. In a recent study, Pinho-Ribeiro et al. uncovered a relationship between sensory neurons and immune cells in the meninges that facilitates brain invasion…