ganglioside--gd1a and Inflammation

It is known that exogenous gangliosides (GL) inhibit acute inflammatory signals in different cells induced by Escherichia coli lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Until now the mechanisms underlying their effect are unknown. We hypothesize that the anti-inflammatory effect of GL is caused by their ability to modify TLR4 translocation into the lipid rafts. To test this hypothesis, we studied the effect of exogenous GL on LPS-induced inflammatory reactions associated with increased nitric oxide and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production in epithelial cells isolated from the frog Rana temporia urinary bladder. It was shown that preincubation of cells with GM1 and GD1a in the concentration range from 100 nm to 50 μM reduced the effect of 25 μg/ml LPS E. coli on the increase of NO and PGE2 production. The effect of LPS was also eliminated in the presence of polymyxin B, capable to interact with lipid A in LPS molecule, which makes it inaccessible for binding to TLR4. The subcellular fractionation of epithelial cells in the sucrose density gradient in combination with immunoblotting revealed that LPS stimulates translocation of TLR4 into the lipid rafts in the cytoplasmic membrane. Preincubation of cells with GM1 or GD1a at concentration 20 μM completely eliminated the effect of LPS. A similar effect was revealed with 1 mM methyl-β-cyclodextrin, a classical destructor of the lipid rafts. The results indicate the existence of a previously unknown mechanism of the anti-inflammatory effect of exogenous GL associated with their ability to interfere with LPS-induced translocation of TLR4 into the lipid rafts preventing LPS signal transduction. It is assumed that the observed effect of GL is based on their incorporation into cytoplasmic membrane and modification of the lipid rafts organization.

Topics: Animals; Cells, Cultured; Epithelial Cells; G(M1) Ganglioside; Gangliosides; Inflammation; Lipopolysaccharides; Rana temporaria

Pseudomonas aeruginosa strains are opportunistic pathogens associated with infections in immunocompromised hosts and patients with cystic fibrosis. Like many other mucosal pathogens, P. aeruginosa cells express flagella which provide motility and chemotaxis toward preferred substrates but also provide a ligand for clearance by phagocytic cells. We tested the role of flagella in the initial stages of respiratory tract infection by comparing the virulence of fliC mutants in a neonatal mouse model of pneumonia. In the absence of fliC, there was no mortality, compared with 30% mortality attributed to the parental strain PAK or 15% mortality associated with infection due to a pilA mutant PAK/NP (P < 0.0001). The fliC mutants caused pneumonia in only 25% of the mice inoculated, regardless of whether there was expression of the pilus, whereas the parental strain was associated with an 80% rate of pneumonia. Histopathological studies demonstrated that the fliC mutants caused very focal inflammation and that the organisms did not spread through the lungs as seen in infection due to either PAK or PAK/NP. Purified flagellin elicited an intense inflammatory response in the mouse lung. 125I-labeled flagellin bound to the glycolipids GM1 and GD1a and to asialoGM1 in an in vitro binding assay. However, flagellin-mediated binding to epithelial gangliosides was a relatively unusual event, as quantified by binding assays of wild-type or fliC mutant organisms to CHO Lec-2 cells with membrane-incorporated GM1. Fla+ organisms but not fliC mutants were efficiently taken up by murine macrophages. P. aeruginosa flagella are important in the establishment of respiratory tract infection and may act as a tether in initial interactions with epithelial membranes. This function is offset by the contribution of flagella to host clearance mechanisms facilitating phagocytic clearance and the role of flagellar genes in mucin binding and clearance.

Topics: Animals; Bacterial Adhesion; Bacterial Proteins; CHO Cells; Cricetinae; DNA-Binding Proteins; Fimbriae Proteins; Flagella; Flagellin; Flow Cytometry; G(M1) Ganglioside; Gangliosides; Inflammation; Macrophages; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; Pneumonia, Bacterial; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Pseudomonas Infections; Respiratory Tract Infections; Tumor Cells, Cultured; Virulence