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Infect. Immun. doi:10.1128/IAI.01770-06
Copyright (c) 2007, American Society for Microbiology and/or the Listed Authors/Institutions. All Rights Reserved.

Influence of Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis on colitis development and specific immune responses during disease

Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine; Department of Microbiology & Immunology, University of Louisville; Department of Infectious Diseases, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia; Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug Administration

^* To whom correspondence should be addressed. Email: james.lillard{at}louisville.edu.

	Abstract

The granulomatous and intramural inflammation observed in cases of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) and veterinary Johne's disease suggests Mycobacterium avium paratuberculosis (MAP) via contaminated dairy products is a causative agent. However, an incomplete understanding of the immunological steps responsible for the pathologies of IBD makes this conclusion uncertain. Serum from IL-10^-/- mice with spontaneous colitis displayed significantly higher MAP-specific IgG2a Ab responses than serum from similar mice without disease. Pathogen free IL-10^-/- mice received control vehicle or the vehicle containing heat-killed or live MAP. Mucosal CD4⁺ T cells from these mice that developed colitis proliferated and secreted higher levels of IFN- and TNF- after ex vivo stimulationith a V11⁺ TCR-restricted peptide from the MPT59/85B antigen (Ag), compared with cells from mice before the onset of colitis. The data from this study provide important information regarding the mechanisms of colitis in IL-10^-/- mice driven in part by Ag85B-specific T cells. The data suggest a plausible mechanism of Ag-specific T cell responses in colitis driven by potent Ags conserved in Mycobacterium species.