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Chlamydiae are obligate intracellular bacteria residing exclusively in host cell vesicles termed inclusions. We have investigated the effects of deferoxamine mesylate (DAM)‐induced iron deficiency on the growth of Chlamydia pneumoniae and Chlamydia trachomatis serovar L2. In epithelial cells subjected to iron starvation and infected with either C. pneumoniae or C. trachomatis L2, small inclusions were formed, and the infectivity of chlamydial progeny was impaired. Moreover, for C. trachomatis L2, we observed a delay in homotypic fusion of inclusions. The inhibitory effects of DAM were reversed by adding exogenous iron‐saturated transferrin, which restored the production of infectious chlamydiae. Electron microscopy examination of iron‐deprived specimens revealed that the small inclusions contained reduced numbers of C. pneumoniae that were mostly reticulate bodies. We have previously reported specific …