Meanings of colonize the nasopharynx in английском

Neisseria meningitidis is an exclusively human pathogen that has evolved primarily to colonize the nasopharynx rather than to cause systemic disease.

Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae is a major cause of localized respiratory tract disease and initiates infection by colonizing the nasopharynx.

Because meningococcus is a mucosal pathogen colonizing the nasopharynx, local mucosal immune responses may play an important role in host defense against infection and carriage.