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Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Animals

2012

Immunology and Infectious Disease

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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Lipopolysaccharide Induces And Activates The Nalp3 Inflammasome In The Liver, Michal Ganz, Timea Csak, Bharath D. Nath, Gyongyi Szabo Oct 2012

Lipopolysaccharide Induces And Activates The Nalp3 Inflammasome In The Liver, Michal Ganz, Timea Csak, Bharath D. Nath, Gyongyi Szabo

Gyongyi Szabo

AIM: To examine the activation of the Nalp3 inflammasome and its downstream targets following lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced stimulation in the liver. METHODS: Six-to-eight-week-old C57BL/6 chow fed mice were injected intraperitoneally with 0.5 mug/g bodyweight LPS and sacrificed 2, 4, 6, 18 or 24 h later. LPS-induced liver damage was confirmed by a biochemical assay to detect alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels. To determine if LPS stimulation in the liver led to activation of the inflammasome, real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction was used to evaluate the mRNA expression of components of the Nalp3 inflammasome. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays were used to determine the protein …


Myxoma Virus Induces Type I Interferon Production In Murine Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells Via A Tlr9/Myd88-, Irf5/Irf7-, And Ifnar-Dependent Pathway, Peihong Dai, Hua Cao, Taha Merghoub, Francesca Avogadri, Weiyi Wang, Tanvi Parikh, Chee-Mun Fang, Paula M. Pitha, Katherine A. Fitzgerald, Masmudur M. Rahman, Grant Mcfadden, Xiaoyu Hu, Alan N. Houghton, Stewart Shuman, Liang Deng Jul 2012

Myxoma Virus Induces Type I Interferon Production In Murine Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells Via A Tlr9/Myd88-, Irf5/Irf7-, And Ifnar-Dependent Pathway, Peihong Dai, Hua Cao, Taha Merghoub, Francesca Avogadri, Weiyi Wang, Tanvi Parikh, Chee-Mun Fang, Paula M. Pitha, Katherine A. Fitzgerald, Masmudur M. Rahman, Grant Mcfadden, Xiaoyu Hu, Alan N. Houghton, Stewart Shuman, Liang Deng

Katherine A. Fitzgerald

Poxviruses are large DNA viruses that replicate in the cytoplasm of infected cells. Myxoma virus is a rabbit poxvirus that belongs to the Leporipoxvirus genus. It causes a lethal disease called myxomatosis in European rabbits but cannot sustain any detectable infection in nonlagomorphs. Vaccinia virus is a prototypal orthopoxvirus that was used as a vaccine to eradicate smallpox. Myxoma virus is nonpathogenic in mice, whereas systemic infection with vaccinia virus can be lethal even in immunocompetent mice. Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) are potent type I interferon (IFN)-producing cells that play important roles in antiviral innate immunity. How poxviruses are sensed …


A Novel Role For The Nlrc4 Inflammasome In Mucosal Defenses Against The Fungal Pathogen Candida Albicans, Jeffrey Tomalka, Sandhya Ganesan, Elaheh Azodi, Krupen Patel, Parth Majmudar, Brian A. Hall, Katherine A. Fitzgerald, Amy G. Hise Jul 2012

A Novel Role For The Nlrc4 Inflammasome In Mucosal Defenses Against The Fungal Pathogen Candida Albicans, Jeffrey Tomalka, Sandhya Ganesan, Elaheh Azodi, Krupen Patel, Parth Majmudar, Brian A. Hall, Katherine A. Fitzgerald, Amy G. Hise

Katherine A. Fitzgerald

Candida sp. are opportunistic fungal pathogens that colonize the skin and oral cavity and, when overgrown under permissive conditions, cause inflammation and disease. Previously, we identified a central role for the NLRP3 inflammasome in regulating IL-1beta production and resistance to dissemination from oral infection with Candida albicans. Here we show that mucosal expression of NLRP3 and NLRC4 is induced by Candida infection, and up-regulation of these molecules is impaired in NLRP3 and NLRC4 deficient mice. Additionally, we reveal a role for the NLRC4 inflammasome in anti-fungal defenses. NLRC4 is important for control of mucosal Candida infection and impacts inflammatory cell …


Pattern Recognition Receptors And The Innate Immune Response To Viral Infection, Mikayla R. Thompson, John J. Kaminski Iii, Evelyn A. Kurt-Jones, Katherine A. Fitzgerald Jul 2012

Pattern Recognition Receptors And The Innate Immune Response To Viral Infection, Mikayla R. Thompson, John J. Kaminski Iii, Evelyn A. Kurt-Jones, Katherine A. Fitzgerald

Katherine A. Fitzgerald

The innate immune response to viral pathogens is critical in order to mobilize protective immunity. Cells of the innate immune system detect viral infection largely through germline-encoded pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) present either on the cell surface or within distinct intracellular compartments. These include the Toll-like receptors (TLRs), the retinoic acid-inducble gene I-like receptors (RLRs), the nucleotide oligomerization domain-like receptors (NLRs, also called NACHT, LRR and PYD domain proteins) and cytosolic DNA sensors. While in certain cases viral proteins are the trigger of these receptors, the predominant viral activators are nucleic acids. The presence of viral sensing PRRs in multiple …