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Infection and Immunity, May 2005, p. 3178-3183, Vol. 73, No. 5
0019-9567/05/$08.00+0 doi:10.1128/IAI.73.5.3178-3183.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.
Centro de Investigación y Tecnología Agroalimentaria de Aragón (CITA), Gobierno de Aragón, Ap. 727, 50080 Zaragoza, Spain,1 INSERM U431, Université de Montpellier II, Place Eugène Bataillon, CC 100, 34095-Montpellier, France2
Received 21 October 2004/ Returned for modification 26 November 2004/ Accepted 16 December 2004
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1,2-linked perosamine (5), explain this attenuation. The LPS O chain protects the bacteria from cellular cationic peptides (13, 30), oxygen metabolites (45), and complement-mediated lysis (10, 27), is a key molecule for Brucella invasion and development (36), and impairs the apoptotic or necrotic signals directed against the infected cells (11, 35). Recently, we showed that immune molecules that elicit macrophage defense are produced at higher levels in rough Brucella-infected macrophages than in smooth Brucella-infected macrophages (26, 40). Production of immune molecules depends on intracellular signaling pathways that connect receptor-mediated events to transcriptional response within the nucleus. One important group of signaling pathways, the mitogen-activating protein kinase (MAPK) signaling cascade, is implicated in bacterial pathogenesis as demonstrated by the induction or inhibition of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPKs during infection with Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (21), Yersinia spp. (34, 42), Listeria monocytogenes (46, 47), and Mycobacterium spp. (43). Therefore, the discrepancies in the virulence of smooth and rough Brucella could be linked to the MAPK pathways triggered by these bacteria. We thus analyzed these pathways and their possible relationship with the divergent responses of macrophages infected with smooth or rough Brucella. The results obtained with intact live Brucella greatly suggest that because of their relationship with the LPS O chain, the MAPKs are a target for immune intercession by virulent smooth Brucella. Table 1 shows the Brucella strains used in the study. As mentioned in previous reports (1, 14, 26, 36), all of the rough Brucella assessed displayed a great attenuation in mouse or isolated macrophages compared to smooth Brucella. To analyze the activation of p38 and ERK1/2 kinases during infection, J774.A1 cells (106/well) were incubated with the different Brucella strains (multiplicity of infection [MOI] = 40) at 37°C. They were then rinsed twice with phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) and lysed in 150 µl of buffer containing 50 mM HEPES (pH 7.4), 150 mM NaCl, 10 mM NaF, 10 mM iodoacetamide, 1% NP-40, 1 mM Na2VO3, and 1 µg/ml of each protease inhibitor (leupeptin, apoprotein, and chymostatin) and centrifuged. The cytosolic fraction denatured by the addition of reducing buffer and boiling was analyzed by Western blotting with anti-phospho-p38 MAPK and anti-phospho-ERK 1/2 (Cell Signaling Technology, Beverly, MA), which recognize the phosphorylated (i.e., activated) form of the MAPKs (28, 29). Pan p38 (anti-p38MAPK) (Cell Signaling) and pan ERK2 (anti-ERK2) (Santa Cruz Biotechnology, Inc., CA), which detect both active and inactive forms of kinases, were applied on stripped blots to verify that equivalent amounts of proteins were loaded per lane (28, 29). Figure 1A shows that at 30 min postinfection (p.i.), the activation process triggered by the rough Brucella resulted in a potent phosphorylation of the p38 and ERK1/2 MAP kinases. Infections with smooth Brucella induced a markedly weaker (or no visible) stimulation of these kinases, with B. suis and B. abortus 2308 demonstrating a slightly higher capacity of activation than B. melitensis, a difference which could be due to the genetic background of the different bacteria. Figure 1B shows that B. suis manB-induced phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPKs occurred within 5 min of infection and increased until at least 4 h p.i. This was true for the other rough Brucella, demonstrating that the activation resulted from a long active process which involved the attachment, ingestion, and early death of the bacteria, as shown with macrophages infected with virulent mycobacteria (41). The weak phosphorylation triggered by B. suis, which was visible at 30 min p.i., increased modestly but always remained at a much lower level than the phosphorylation induced by B. suis manB. Therefore, the slight activation observed at 30 min p.i. was not due to a delayed kinetic of activation but reflected the poor capacity of activation of the bacteria. In Salmonella, the LPS O chain is crucial for the signaling triggered by the direct interaction between the bacterial LPS and macrophages (32). Furthermore, the LPS lipid As of smooth and rough B. abortus are structurally different (4). There was no significant difference in ERK1/2 and p38 MAPK activation elicited by the LPS from virulent smooth B. abortus 2308 or rough vaccine strain B. abortus 45/20 (Fig. 1C). Moreover, when added at 100 ng in the assays, the LPS from B. abortus 2308 did not modify the ERK1/2 and p38 MAPK activation induced by B. abortus 45/20 or B. suis manB (MOI = 40) (data not shown). Therefore, neither a direct effect of the O chain on macrophages, nor the sole structural change of the lipid A explain the potent ability of intact rough Brucella to activate MAPKs compared to smooth Brucella. Owing to the absence of the O chain, the MAPK activation could be due to increased numbers of lipid A molecules exposed at the surface of the bacteria. However, the amount of LPS carried by 4 x 107 rough Brucella, which corresponds to a MOI of 40 and is theoretically lower than 50 ng LPS (33), promoted no perceptible activation of MAPKs (Fig. 1C) and therefore eliminated such a possibility. Finally, in accordance with its poor endotoxic potential (17, 23), the LPS appears to be a minor actor of MAPK activation by intact rough Brucella. This result appears to coincide with recent reports claiming that TLR2 but not TLR4 are involved in macrophage stimulation by heat-killed Brucella (15, 22). Phagocytes express a variety of receptors that participate in Brucella recognition and internalization (3). Because of the exposition of ligands normally hidden by the O chain in smooth Brucella at the surface of the bacteria, the rough mutants bind to macrophages and penetrate into these cells to a much higher extent than the parental smooth Brucella (9, 31, 36, 40). The rough Brucella-elicited activation could result from a saturation of the macrophage receptors engaged by these different ligands. However, the MAPK activation triggered by B. ovis REO198 eliminated this possibility. B. ovis REO198 binds to and penetrate macrophages or J774A.1 cells to a similar extent as smooth Brucella (reference 14 and data not shown), but it activated the MAPKs at a level similar to those of other rough Brucella spp. (Fig. 1). It is thus likely that only few favored receptors elicited MAPK activation during infection with rough Brucella. This possibility agrees with the data in Fig. 1D, which compare the activation of ERK1/2 triggered by B. suis and B. suis manB when the rough mutant MOI decreased from 40 to 5. Under these conditions, which tended to equalize the uptake of B. suis (18,500 ± 5,210 CFU/106 cells for a MOI of 40) and B. suis manB (25,430 ± 7,840 CFU/106 cells for a MOI of 5), the discrepancy in ERK1/2 activation was still observed.
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TABLE 1. Brucella strains used in the studya
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FIG. 1. Activation of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPKs in J774A.1 cells treated with different Brucella strains or with Brucella LPSs. ERK1/2 and p38 MAPKs were determined by Western immunoblotting of J774A.1 cells treated (A) for 30 min with different strains of smooth or rough Brucella (MOI = 40), (B) for different periods of time with B. suis manB or B. suis (MOI = 40), or (C) for 30 min with different concentrations of purified LPSs from smooth B. abortus 2308 (0.050 µg/ml to 5 µg/ml) or rough B. abortus 45/20 (0.025 µg/ml to 2.5 µg/ml). The LPSs were obtained from I. Moriyón (University of Navarra, Pamplona, Spain). They were carefully solubilized by sonication. Their purification and properties have been reported elsewhere (2, 14). The effect of the smooth LPS was assessed at concentrations double those for the rough LPS to compare the lipid A of both LPSs (I. Moriyón, personal communication) (D) or for 30 min with B. suis manB (MOI = 40, 15, and 5) or B. suis (MOI = 40); 2 x 106 J774A.1 cells were cultured at 37°C for the indicated periods of time in 150 µl of RPMI 1640 alone (cells) or supplemented with B. suis, B. melitensis 16 M (B. mel), B. abortus 2308 (B. 2308), B. ovis REO198 (B. ovis), B. suis manB (B. manB), B. melitensis R5 (B. R5), B. melitensis B3B2 (B. B3B2), B. abortus RB51 (B. RB51) or B. abortus 45/20 (B. 45/20), or with different concentrations of the purified LPS from B. abortus 2308 or B. abortus 45/20. They were then rinsed, lysed, and after sodium dodecyl sulfate-10% acrylamide gel electrophoresis and transfer to nitrocellulose membrane, analyzed with phosphospecific antibodies against ERK1/2 or p38 active kinases. The blots were stripped and reprobed with pan antibodies (A and C). In panel B, the same blot was sequentially analyzed for phospho-ERK1/2, phospho-p38, and pan p38 MAPKs. Results are representative of three separate experiments which gave identical results.
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FIG. 2. (A and B) Analysis of iNOS expression in J774A.1 cells infected with different Brucella strains. J774A.1 cells (106) in 100 µl of RPMI 1640 were infected for 30 min at 37°C with the different Brucella strains analyzed in Fig. 1 (MOI = 40) or not infected (cells). They were then extensively washed and cultured in gentamicin-supplemented RPMI 1640-10% FCS. At 24 h p.i., they were lysed and analyzed by Western immunoblotting, with a mouse anti-iNOS serum (Alexis Corp., San Diego, Calif.) as previously described (19). (C and D) Inhibition of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPK activation elicited by B. suis manB. J774A.1 cells were pretreated for 30 min with the indicated concentrations of PD98059 or SB20380 in RPMI 1640 at 37°C. They were then infected (or not) for 30 min with B. suis manB (MOI = 40) in the presence of the MAPK inhibitor applied during the pretreatment. They were lysed and analyzed by Western immunoblotting as mentioned in Fig. 1, with phosphospecific antibodies against ERK1/2 or p38 active kinase. The stripped blots were then reprobed with pan antibodies. (E) Effect of PD98059 and SB20380 on iNOS expression in J774A.1 cells infected with B. suis manB. J774A.1 cells were pretreated (or not) for 30 min with the indicated concentrations of PD98059 or SB20380 in RPMI 1640 at 37°C. They were then infected for 30 min with B. suis manB in the presence of the MAPK inhibitor applied during the pretreatment, cultured for a further 4 h in RPMI 1640-10% FCS supplemented with 30 µg/ml gentamicin in the presence of PD98059 or SB20380. The MAPK inhibitors were then removed by washing, and the infected cells were cultured again in the gentamicin-supplemented medium. At 24 h p.i., the expression of iNOS was analyzed by Western immunoblotting as in panels A and B. Each experiment was performed at least three times. The MAPK inhibitors were dissolved in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) so that the DMSO dilution was always lower than 0.1% in assays. At this dilution, the DMSO affected neither MAPKs nor iNOS induction. B. manB, B. suis manB; B. 2308, B. abortus 2308; B. 45/20, B. abortus 45/20; B. RB51, B. abortus RB51; B. 16M, B. melitensis 16 M; B. ovis, B. ovis REO198; B. B3B2, B. melitensis B3B2; B. R5, B. melitensis R5.
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-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester), a specific inhibitor of iNOS (Fig. 3B). Altogether, the data showed that the B. suis manB-induced ERK1/2 MAPK pathway regulated the killing of bacteria and that it could be through the induction of iNOS. This possibility was in accordance with the results observed during the infection of J774A1 cells with B. suis: when iNOS was not induced, PD98059 (or L-NAME) did not significantly modify the bacterial invasiveness (Fig. 3) (19) (P > 0.5 or P > 0.2 at 48 h compared to B. suis alone). Therefore, the B. suis manB-triggered ERK1/2 MAPK activation armed the host cells with a NO-generating system. The capacity of defense of the cells against the bacteria was thus reinforced by a microbicidal weapon which was missing during infections with smooth wild-type B. suis. Regarding the data of Fig. 1 and 2, the ERK1/2 MAPK activation and its consequence on iNOS induction appeared to be a general property of the rough Brucella spp. which participate in the clearance of the bacteria during an active infection. In addition, when it is produced in large amounts, NO is deleterious to cells. Therefore, in certain conditions of infections, the rough Brucella-elicited activation could favor the death of the host cells and thus negatively affect the apparent development of the bacteria. This could be the case in infections performed at elevated MOIs (35) or in the absence of serum (11). In any case, by indirectly preventing the ERK1/2 MAPK activation, the LPS O chain impaired NO formation and thus favored the intramacrophagic development of smooth Brucella.
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FIG. 3. Intracellular behavior of B. suis manB or B. suis within J774A.1 cells treated with PD98059 (A) or L-NAME (B). (A) J774A.1 cells pretreated for 30 min with 25 µM PD98059 ( , ) or not treated ( , ) were infected with B. suis manB ( , ) or B. suis (, ) as described in the text. They were then washed and cultured for a further 4 h in gentamicin-supplemented RPMI 1640-10% FCS in the presence 25 µM PD98059 ( , ) or not ( , ). The MAPK inhibitor was then removed by washing, the infected cells being cultured in the gentamicin-supplemented medium. At different times p.i., the intracellular number of bacteria was measured as described in reference 26. (B) J774A.1 cells were infected with B. suis manB ( , ) or B. suis (, ) (MOI = 40). Thirty minutes after the onset of the infection, they were cultured in gentamicin-supplemented RPMI 1640-10% FCS in the presence ( , ) or absence of 3 mM L-NAME ( , ). At different times, the intracellular number of bacteria was measured as described in reference 26. Infections were performed in triplicate. Results were expressed as CFU/well ± standard deviation. DMSO used to dissolve PD98059 did not affect the infection of J774A.1 cells with Brucella, a dilution of 0.1% having been applied in the assays. Both experiments were repeated at least four times, giving similar results. Where indicated in the text, CFU values relative to different assays at one time p.i. were compared by using the Student t test.
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and others), for instance, participate in the clearance of Brucella (26, 40). In numerous situations, the production of these mediators depends on the activation of the p38 and ERK1/2 MAPKs alone or in coordination (7). Therefore, our results, which indicated that the p38 and ERK1/2 MAP kinases were strongly activated upon infection of mouse macrophages with rough Brucella, but not upon infection with smooth Brucella, defined the MAPKs as critical signaling molecules in the reactions of macrophages to Brucella. Although the LPS O chain has no direct action on the MAPK pathway, it interferes with this pathway by regulating the interaction between bacteria and host cells during uptake of Brucella. The resulting interference appears instrumental in determining the eventual fate of the bacteria. The slight MAPK activation associated with virulent smooth Brucella infections suggests a novel point of immune intervention by Brucella.
We thank A. Cloeckaert from INRA, France, for providing the LPS monoclonal antibodies and I. Moriyón from Universidad de Navarra and E. Moreno from Universidad National Costa Rica for providing the LPS. We thank Morjaria Sejal for correcting and improving our English.
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