from Scott D. Kobayashi, Kevin M. Rigby and Frank R. DeLeo writing in Bacterial Pathogenesis: Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms:
The interaction of bacteria with host cells largely dictates the outcome of infection. Whether following a breach in the epithelium or by dissemination from colonized tissues, bacteria interact directly with immune and non-immune host cells. Therefore, it is perhaps not surprising that bacteria implement multiple strategies to circumvent destruction or avoid detection by the host. One such strategy is the ability of bacteria to alter host cell apoptosis or cause other forms of cell death. Although some bacterial pathogens induce or delay cell death and thereby promote disease, bacteria-induced cell death can also be beneficial to the host. This topic is reviewed in the present chapter.
Further reading: Bacterial Pathogenesis: Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms