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Infection and Immunity, June 2004, p. 3561-3570, Vol. 72, No. 6
0019-9567/04/$08.00+0 DOI: 10.1128/IAI.72.6.3561-3570.2004
Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Scott A. Handley,1,
,
James Lewis,2,3 and Virginia L. Miller1,4*
Department of Molecular Microbiology,1 Department of Medicine,2 Department of Pathology and Immunology,3 Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 631104
Received 4 August 2003/ Returned for modification 30 September 2003/ Accepted 22 February 2004
Yersinia enterocolitica is a gram-negative enteric pathogen responsible for a number of gastrointestinal disorders. A striking feature of the pathology of a Y. enterocolitica infection is inflammation. Recently, we demonstrated a role for interleukin-1
(IL-1
) in the establishment of intestinal inflammation in response to a Y. enterocolitica infection. A cytokine directly affected by IL-1 levels is IL-6. A previous report suggested that IL-6 plays an anti-inflammatory role during Y. enterocolitica infection, and in other systems IL-6 has been shown to be proinflammatory. Therefore, a closer examination of the roles of IL-6 and inflammatory cytokines in the control of Y. enterocolitica infection in IL-6/ mice was undertaken. Y. enterocolitica organisms were more virulent in the IL-6/ mice (60-fold decreased 50% lethal dose) and colonized systemic tissues more rapidly and to a higher level than in the wild-type mice. One role of IL-6 during a Y. enterocolitica infection may be the downmodulation of the inflammatory response. The IL-6/ mice have a more robust TH1 T-cell response, as well as hyperinflammatory pathologies. These phenotypes appear to be due to the misregulation of tumor necrosis factor alpha, monocyte chemotactic protein 1, IL-10, transforming growth factor ß1, and gamma interferon in the IL-6/ mouse. These data provide further insight into the intricate cytokine signaling pathways involved in the regulation of inflammatory responses and the control of bacterial infections.
P.H.D. and S.A.H. contributed equally to this study.
Present address: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Texas Health Sciences Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX 78229-3900.
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