The intracellular pathogen concept classifies pathogenic microbes on the basis of their site of replication and dependence on host cells. This concept played a fundamental role in establishing the field of cellular microbiology, founded in part by Dr. Pascale Cossart, whose seminal contributions are honored in this issue of Molecular Microbiology. The recognition that microbes can access and replicate in privileged compartments within host cells has led to many new and fruitful lines of investigation into the biology of the cell and mechanisms of cell-mediated immunity. However, like any scientific concept, the intracellular pathogen concept can become a dogma that constrains thinking and oversimplifies complex and dynamic host-pathogen interactions. Growing evidence has blurred the distinction between "intracellular" and "extracellular" pathogens and demonstrated that many pathogens can exist both within and outside of cells. Although the intracellular pathogen concept remains useful, it should not be viewed as a rigid classification of pathogenic microbes, which exhibit remarkable variation and complexity in their behavior in the host.

中文翻译：

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细胞内病原体的概念。

细胞内病原体概念根据病原微生物的复制位点和对宿主细胞的依赖性对病原微生物进行分类。该概念在建立细胞微生物学领域中发挥了根本作用，该领域部分由Pascale Cossart博士创立，他的开创性贡献在本期《分子微生物学》中得到了表彰。微生物可以进入宿主细胞并在特权区室中复制的认识导致人们对细胞生物学和细胞介导的免疫机制进行了许多新颖而富有成果的研究。然而，像任何科学概念一样，细胞内病原体概念可能成为一种教条，它束缚了思维并简化了复杂而动态的宿主-病原体相互作用。越来越多的证据模糊了“细胞内”和“细胞内”之间的区别。