The cell-surface structures of Neisseria meningitidis play a critical role in the interaction of the bacterium with the human host both as variable antigens that evade immune eradication and by promoting colonization of and adherence to epithelial cells in the nasopharynx. Surface molecules are also implicated in the patho- genicity of some meningococci by facilitating invasion of host cells, survival in the bloodstream, and resistance to phagocytosis. The antigenic diversity among cell- surface components has also been exploited for the development of classification schemes for N. meningitidis , which have in turn been used for epidemiological monitoring of meningococcal disease.
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