Being an intracellular pathogen demands being able to invade a host cell, to circumvent the
host immune response and to survive in the intracellular environment. Pore-forming proteins
are among the innumerable tools used by intracellular microorganisms to achieve these
goals. Remarkably, this seems to be a multipurpose group of proteins that can act in several
ways. Making channels may signify entering into host cells, inhibiting phagocytosis,
escaping phagosomes or promoting pathogen dissemination. In certain cases, pore-forming …