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Departments of
*
Microbiology and
Oral Biology, University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL 35294; and
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD 20814
| Abstract |
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, IL-6, and TNF-
upon secondary stimulation. In contrast,
pretreatment of THP-1 cells with P. gingivalis LPS
resulted in a mitigation of IL-1
, but not IL-6 and TNF-
production upon subsequent exposure to P. gingivalis
LPS: primary or secondary stimulation with
100 ng/ml P.
gingivalis LPS resulted in comparable levels of IL-6 and
TNF-
, while stimulation of THP-1 cells with
1 µg/ml P.
gingivalis LPS induced a significant enhancement in IL-6 and
TNF-
levels upon secondary exposure. To identify possible mechanisms
for these differences, changes in the expression of molecules involved
in the LPS-signaling pathway were assessed. Pretreatment of THP-1 cells
with E. coli LPS resulted in a significant reduction in
surface Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) expression and an inability to
degrade I-
B-
or I-
B-
proteins upon secondary
stimulation. In contrast, pretreatment of THP-1 cells with P.
gingivalis LPS resulted in a significant enhancement of both
CD14 and TLR2, while maintaining the ability to degrade I-
B-
only upon secondary stimulation. Thus, E. coli and
P. gingivalis LPS differentially affect CD14 and TLR
expression as well as secondary LPS-associated
responses. | Introduction |
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To date, 10 human TLRs have been identified and appear to function as innate immune receptors for LPS and other microbial products (8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 14). Of these, TLR2 and TLR4 have been reported to function as LPS-signaling receptors (9, 10). It has been shown that LPS-hyporesponsive C3H/HeJ and C57BL/10ScCr mice possess a point or null mutation, respectively, in the gene that encodes TLR4 (15, 16). In contrast, mice that lack TLR2, but not TLR4, appear to have no significant defects in their ability to respond to enterobacterial LPS (17). Other studies have shown that phenol-water reextraction of enterobacterial LPS to remove endotoxin impurities abrogates TLR2, but not TLR4 agonist activity (18, 19, 20). Thus, the ability of commercial enterobacterial LPS preparations to signal via TLR2 appears to be the result of contaminants within these preparations.
Studies assessing the immunostimulatory properties of nonenterobacterial LPS preparations have shown that the LPS from the oral periodontal pathogens Porphyromonas gingivalis and Prevotella intermedia exhibit biologic activity in C3H/HeJ mice even after phenol-water reextraction (21, 22, 23, 24, 25). Furthermore, it has been shown that protein-free P. gingivalis LPS utilizes TLR2, and not TLR4, in a study using human cell lines deficient in TLR2 or transfected with human TLR2 or TLR4 (26). This study also demonstrated no quantitative or qualitative differences in the ability of P. gingivalis LPS to stimulate C3H/HeJ or C3H/OuJ macrophages. Thus, there appears to be a divergence in the ability of nonenterobacterial and enterobacterial LPS to signal via TLR2 or TLR4 receptors.
Although LPS is a potent inducer of various cellular responses by
neutrophils, monocytes, and macrophages, prior exposure of these cells
to enterobacterial LPS results in a refractory state upon secondary
stimulation. This in vitro state of endotoxin tolerance has typically
been associated with a marked reduction in the production of various
proinflammatory cytokines in response to a secondary stimulation with
LPS (27, 28, 29). The molecular mechanisms that underlie
induction of LPS tolerance appear to affect proximal signaling events,
including down-regulation of TLR4, reduced IL-1R-associated kinase
levels, alterations in phospholipase C-
1 and phosphatidylinositol-3'
kinase, reduced GTP-binding and G protein content, as well as reduced
activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases, I-
B kinases, and
the degradation of I-
B-
and I-
B-
(30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36).
P. gingivalis has been implicated as an etiologic agent of
adult periodontitis, a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by
the destruction of the supportive tissue surrounding teeth
(37, 38, 39). This bacterium possesses a number of potential
virulence factors, including LPS, which is important in the disease
process (37, 38, 40). P. gingivalis LPS has
been shown to differ from Escherichia coli LPS in structure
and various functional activities (37, 41, 42). The
purpose of the present study was to examine the ability of P.
gingivalis LPS to induce endotoxin tolerance. To this end, we
compared the in vitro cytokine responses of THP-1 cells following
primary and secondary exposure to P. gingivalis or E.
coli LPS. Differential effects on induction of select cytokines,
expression of CD14 and TLRs, and dysregulation of I-
B degradation
were observed.
| Materials and Methods |
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Protein-free E. coli (K235) and P.
gingivalis (33277) LPS were prepared as previously described
(18, 26). Mouse anti-human TLR2 (clone 2392; IgG1) was
obtained from Genentech (San Francisco, CA). Mouse anti-human TLR4
(clone HTA125; IgG2a) was kindly provided by K. Miyake (Saga Medical
School, Saga, Japan) and was characterized previously
(43). Goat anti-mouse IgG1 FITC, IgG2a PE, and mouse
anti-human CD14 (clone mem-18; IgG1), and isotype-matched control
Abs (IgG1 and IgG2a) were purchased from Caltag Laboratories
(Burlingame, CA). Rabbit polyclonal IgG anti-I-
B-
and
anti-I-
B-
Abs were purchased from Santa Cruz Biotechnology
(Santa Cruz, CA). Levels of IL-1
, IL-6, and TNF-
present in
cell-free supernatants were determined using cytokine reagents
purchased from Caltag Laboratories.
Cytokine analysis
THP-1 cells (1 x 105/well) were cultured in 96-well plates containing RPMI 1640 supplemented with 10% FBS, 50 µM 2-ME, 1 mM sodium pyruvate, 2 mM L-glutamine, 1.5 g/L sodium bicarbonate, 20 mM HEPES, 50 µg/ml gentamicin, 50 U/ml penicillin, and 50 µg/ml streptomycin. Cell cultures were incubated at 37°C in a humidified CO2 incubator. Before stimulation, THP-1 cells were differentiated for 72 h in the presence of 10 ng/ml PMA, washed three times, and rested overnight. To assess the functional role of CD14, TLR2, or TLR4 in cytokine production, THP-1 cells (1 x 105/well) were incubated with 10 µg/ml of either anti-CD14 mAb (Caltag Laboratories; clone mem-18), anti-TLR2 mAb, anti-TLR4 mAb, or isotype-matched control Abs for 30 min before stimulation with P. gingivalis or E. coli LPS. To assess the ability of P. gingivalis or E. coli LPS to induce endotoxin tolerance in THP-1 cells, differentiated THP-1 cells (2.5 x 105/ml) were stimulated with 110,000 ng/ml LPS for 24 h, washed with serum-free medium, and restimulated with LPS for an additional 24 h. Cytokine levels were quantitated using CLB Pelikine ELISA kits (obtained through Caltag Laboratories), according to the protocol suggested by the manufacturer.
Flow cytometry
Differentiated THP-1 cells were cultured at a concentration of 5 x 105 cells/ml in polypropylene tubes and incubated for 20 h in medium alone or with LPS. Cells were collected by low-speed centrifugation and resuspended in FACS buffer (PBS containing 1% FBS and 0.1% NaN3). Cells were then incubated with FITC-labeled anti-CD14 or unlabeled anti-TLR2 or anti-TLR4 mAbs for 30 min on ice. Cells were then centrifuged and resuspended in FACS buffer. THP-1 cells initially stained with anti-TLR2 or anti-TLR4 mAb were then incubated with goat anti-mouse IgG1 FITC or goat anti-mouse IgG2a PE, respectively, for 20 min on ice. Cells were washed three times in FACS buffer and resuspended in 2% paraformaldehyde before being analyzed by flow cytometry using a FACStar flow cytometer (BD Biosciences, Mountain View, CA).
Western blot analysis
THP-1 cells (3 x 106/ml) pretreated
with medium or LPS were restimulated for the indicated time periods
noted in the figures, washed with PBS, and then lysed on ice for 10 min
in 300 µl lysis buffer (50 mM HEPES, pH 7.4, 150 mM NaCl, 1 mM EDTA,
1% Nonidet P-40, 0.1% SDS, 0.5% sodium deoxycholate, 1 mM sodium
orthovanadate, 1 mM sodium flouride, 1 mM PMSF, and 1 mg/ml aprotonin).
Whole cell lysate was passed through a 20-gauge needle and then
incubated on ice for 30 min. Cell debris was pelleted by
centrifugation. Supernatants were collected and stored at -80°C
until assayed. Thirty micrograms of total cellular protein were
suspended in Laemmli buffer, boiled for 3 min, and subjected to
SDS-PAGE. Gels were transferred to nitrocellulose membranes and blocked
with TBS containing 0.05% Tween 20 (TBS-Tw) and 5% nonfat milk powder
for 1 h. After washing in TBS, membranes were probed with rabbit
anti-I-
B-
(1:1000) or anti-I-
B-
(1:1000) Abs
(Santa Cruz Biotechnology) for 2 h at room temperature. Membranes
were then washed with TBS-Tw and incubated with a polyclonal secondary
goat anti-rabbit IgG HRP Ab (1:2000; Santa Cruz Biotechnology) for
1.5 h at room temperature. Following three washes in TBS-Tw,
membranes were developed using ECL, according to the manufacturers
protocol (Santa Cruz Biotechnology).
Statistical analysis
Statistical significance between groups was evaluated by ANOVA and the Tukey multiple-comparison test using the InStat program (GraphPad Software, San Diego, CA). Differences between groups were considered significant at the level of p < 0.05.
| Results |
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, IL-6, and TNF-
production from THP-1
cells stimulated with P. gingivalis or E.
coli LPS
We first compared the ability of protein-free E. coli
and P. gingivalis LPS to induce primary proinflammatory
cytokine responses. PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells were stimulated for
24 h in the presence or absence of varying concentrations of LPS,
and cell-free supernatants were collected. E. coli LPS was
significantly (p < 0.05) more potent for the
induction of IL-1
(Fig. 1
A), IL-6 (Fig. 1
B), and TNF-
(Fig. 1
C) than P.
gingivalis LPS at all concentrations tested. Similar results were
observed at earlier time points (6 and 12 h), as well as with
elutriated human monocytes (data not shown). These data demonstrate
significant differences in the abilities of P. gingivalis
and E. coli LPS to induce these proinflammatory cytokines by
human monocytes, consistent with previous observations that P.
gingivalis LPS is a less potent inducer of inflammatory cytokines
(26, 44).
|
To compare the ability of P. gingivalis or E.
coli LPS to induce endotoxin tolerance, THP-1 cells were
stimulated for 24 h in the presence of LPS and then restimulated
after washing for an additional 24 h with the same LPS
concentration and assayed for cytokine production. When THP-1 cells
were pretreated with E. coli LPS at concentrations from 1 to
10,000 ng/ml, a >90% reduction was observed in the level of IL-1
,
IL-6, and TNF-
production upon secondary stimulation with the same
concentration of LPS (Fig. 2
, AC). In contrast, pretreatment of THP-1 cells with
P. gingivalis LPS resulted in a statistically significant
mitigation of IL-1
only (Fig. 2
D). Although the induction
of IL-1
by THP-1 cells was dose dependent, the levels of IL-1
induced by restimulation with 1 or 10 µg/ml P. gingivalis
LPS were significantly lower (p < 0.05) than
that seen following primary stimulation with P. gingivalis
LPS (Fig. 2
D). Thus, the induction of IL-1
was reduced,
but not completely ablated, as was observed when THP-1 cells were
pretreated with as little as 1 ng/ml E. coli LPS (Fig. 2
A). No significant alterations between the primary or
secondary cytokine levels of IL-6 or TNF-
were observed with THP-1
cells pretreated with P. gingivalis LPS at concentrations
from 1 to 100 ng/ml (Fig. 2
, E and F). However,
at concentrations of 1 µg/ml, pretreatment of THP-1 cells with
P. gingivalis LPS resulted in significantly
(p < 0.05) enhanced IL-6 and TNF-
levels
upon the secondary stimulation (Fig. 2
, E and F).
Similar results were obtained with elutriated human monocytes (data not
shown). As shown in Fig. 2
, incubation with medium alone following
pretreatment with either E. coli or P. gingivalis
LPS resulted in minimal levels of IL-1
, IL-6, and TNF-
production. These findings demonstrate a major divergence in the
ability of P. gingivalis and E. coli LPS to
induce endotoxin tolerance.
|
Previous studies have shown the involvement of CD14 and TLRs in
mediating LPS-associated responses (9, 10, 45). Therefore,
we next sought to determine the functional involvement of CD14, TLR2,
and TLR4 in our observed LPS-induced cytokine responses by THP-1 cells.
THP-1 cells were incubated with mAbs against CD14, TLR2, and TLR4
before primary stimulation with LPS. The anti-CD14 mAb had a
significant (p < 0.05) inhibitory affect on
TNF-
production by THP-1 cells stimulated with E. coli or
P. gingivalis LPS (Fig. 3
).
THP-1 cells preincubated with anti-TLR4 showed significantly
(p < 0.05) reduced levels of TNF-
upon
stimulation with E. coli LPS (Fig. 3
A). In
contrast, pretreatment with anti-TLR2 mAb had no effect on TNF-
production in these cultures (Fig. 3
A). Pretreatment of
THP-1 cells with anti-TLR4 mAb also resulted in no noticeable
reduction in IL-1
(data not shown) or TNF-
(Fig. 3
B)
production upon subsequent stimulation with P. gingivalis
LPS, as compared with the medium-pretreated and isotype control groups.
In sharp contrast, preincubation of THP-1 cells with the mAb to TLR2
significantly (p < 0.05) inhibited TNF-
production in response to P. gingivalis LPS (Fig. 3
B). Similar results were obtained with elutriated human
monocytes (data not shown). These results demonstrate that P.
gingivalis and E. coli LPS utilize different TLRs in
the human THP-1 monocytic cell line, confirming the findings of others
(9, 10, 18, 20, 26, 45).
|
Due to the ability of E. coli and P.
gingivalis LPS to utilize TLR4 and TLR2, respectively, in THP-1
cells to induce in vitro tolerance, we next sought to determine the
outcome of abrogating the ability of these LPS to utilize TLR2 or TLR4
during the primary (i.e., tolerizing) exposure, as reflected by the
secondary (challenge) responses to E. coli or P.
gingivalis LPS. The addition of anti-TLR2 mAb during
pretreatment of THP-1 cells with E. coli LPS did not affect
its ability to induce endotoxin tolerance (Fig. 4
A). However, exposure of
THP-1 cells to anti-TLR4 mAb during the primary stimulation with
E. coli LPS resulted in levels of TNF-
upon challenge
that were comparable to those observed in medium-pretreated cells
stimulated with E. coli (Fig. 4
A). As seen in
Fig. 2
, THP-1 cells pretreated with P. gingivalis LPS (1
µg/ml), followed by a secondary stimulation with P.
gingivalis LPS, elicited a statistically significant
(p < 0.05) enhancement in TNF-
production
compared with that seen in cultures receiving only a primary LPS
stimulation (Fig. 4
B). Preincubation of THP-1 cells with
anti-TLR4 mAb during the primary stimulation with P.
gingivalis LPS did not significantly modulate IL-1
(data not
shown) or TNF-
(Fig. 4
B) production after secondary
challenge. In contrast, preincubation of THP-1 cells with anti-TLR2
during the primary stimulation with P. gingivalis LPS
abrogated the enhanced secondary TNF-
response and resulted in
levels of TNF-
that were similar to those observed after a primary
stimulation alone (Fig. 4
B). Thus, the altered secondary
responses observed with cultures pretreated with E. coli or
P. gingivalis LPS are mediated, in part, via TLR4 or TLR2,
respectively.
|
Previous studies assessing the induction of endotoxin tolerance by
enterobacterial LPS have demonstrated that pretreatment of peritoneal
macrophages results in a down-regulation of a murine cell surface
epitope that depends on the interaction of TLR4 with its accessory
molecule, MD-2 (36). This decrease in TLR4/MD-2 expression
was correlated with a reduction in the production of proinflammatory
cytokines upon secondary exposure to LPS. Our results suggest that
while P. gingivalis LPS induced tolerance with respect to
IL-1
, it did not induce a state of unresponsiveness with respect to
TNF-
or IL-6 levels upon a secondary exposure. Therefore, we next
wanted to assess the effects of both E. coli and P.
gingivalis LPS on the expression of the proximal signaling
molecules, CD14, TLR2, and TLR4. Pretreatment of THP-1 cells with
various concentrations of E. coli LPS did not significantly
affect CD14 expression as compared with medium-treated controls (Fig. 5
A). In contrast, pretreatment
of THP-1 cells with various concentrations of P. gingivalis
LPS resulted in a significant (p < 0.05)
enhancement of surface CD14 expression (Fig. 5
A). Assessment
of TLR2 and TLR4 expression on THP-1 cells after a 24-h incubation with
E. coli LPS revealed a significant
(p < 0.05) reduction in TLR4 expression to
near background levels, as represented by the isotype control group
(Fig. 5
B). The reduction in TLR4 levels observed with
E. coli LPS-treated THP-1 cells could partially be overcome
by coculturing a blocking Ab to TLR4 (Fig. 5
B). However,
TLR2 expression on THP-1 cells was essentially identical to
medium-treated controls when cultured with E. coli LPS (Fig. 5
B), while incubation of THP-1 cells with P.
gingivalis LPS for 24 h resulted in a significant
(p < 0.05) up-regulation of TLR2 surface
expression. This increase could be reduced to levels observed in the
untreated control group by concurrent treatment of cells with
anti-TLR2 mAb (Fig. 5
B). These data demonstrate that
E. coli and P. gingivalis LPS differentially
affect CD14 and TLR expression in THP-1 cells.
|
B-
and I-
B-
upon
secondary exposure to E. coli or P.
gingivalis LPS
Activation of NF-
B is achieved via phosphorylation,
ubiquitination, and degradation of I-
B proteins (46).
This process allows for the translocation of NF-
B to the nucleus and
activation of transcription. Previous studies addressing I-
B-
and
I-
B-
proteins in LPS-pretreated macrophages have demonstrated
that the degradation of these proteins upon a secondary stimulation is
severely suppressed in murine peritoneal macrophages (35).
Thus, we wanted to determine whether pretreatment of THP-1 cells with
E. coli or P. gingivalis LPS resulted in altered
degradation of I-
B proteins upon secondary stimulation. As shown in
Fig. 6
, E. coli LPS was able
to induce degradation of both I-
B-
and I-
B-
proteins upon a
primary stimulation. In contrast, P. gingivalis LPS
exhibited noticeable I-
B-
degradation, but not I-
B-
degradation (Fig. 6
). Pretreatment of THP-1 cells with E.
coli LPS resulted in a severe reduction at all time points tested
in the ability to degrade either I-
B-
or I-
B-
proteins upon
secondary stimulation. In contrast, P. gingivalis
LPS-pretreated THP-1 cells retained the ability to degrade I-
B-
,
but exhibited no notable degradation of I-
B-
upon secondary
stimulation (Fig. 6
).
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| Discussion |
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Studies assessing TLR regulation have shown that treatment of
macrophages with LPS or its derivatives, or with cytokines including
TNF-
, IL-1
, and IL-1
, results in an up-regulation of TLR2, but
not TLR4, expression (47, 48). Infection of murine
macrophages with Mycobacterium avium has also been shown to
result in increased TLR2 mRNA and surface expression, and it was
suggested that the up-regulation of TLR2 was mediated via the
interaction between this bacterium with TLR2 (48). Indeed,
these findings are consistent with our observations concerning the
ability of P. gingivalis LPS to utilize and subsequently
up-regulate TLR2 expression. Although the precise mechanism of TLR2
up-regulation is currently unknown, it has been shown that blocking
NF-
B activation abrogates the induction of TLR2 mRNA
(47). Analysis of the 5' upstream promoter region of the
tlr2 gene demonstrates the existence of two NF-
B
sites that are important in the ability of LPS to increase
tlr2 gene expression (49). Thus, the ability of
P. gingivalis LPS to maintain NF-
B activity and
subsequent cytokine production could account for the observed levels of
up-regulated TLR2.
In the present study, evidence is provided that demonstrates major
differences in the induction of endotoxin tolerance when using a TLR2-
compared with a TLR4-specific agonist. Our finding that 1 ng/ml
E. coli LPS and 10,000 ng/ml P. gingivalis LPS
induced similar levels of IL-6 and TNF-
from THP-1 cells upon a
primary stimulation, while subsequently exhibiting major differences in
cytokine production upon secondary stimulation, suggests that divergent
pathways utilized by these two types of LPS are responsible for their
differential capacities for inducing tolerance. These findings are
consistent with previous reports demonstrating an association between
TLR usage and differences in the cellular responses induced by some
TLR2 and TLR4 agonists (26, 50, 51). However, it has also
been reported that there are distinct cellular responses induced by
some ligands that utilize the same TLR (52). Reports
assessing cross-tolerization and hyporesponsiveness among some TLR2 and
TLR4 ligands have also shown that while quantitative differences do
exist, their ability to induce tolerance or cross-tolerance was not
directly associated with being a TLR2- or TLR4-specific agonist
(53, 54). Taken together, while it is unlikely that the
differential induction of cellular signaling is solely associated with
a specific TLR usage, there are clearly divergent pathways activated by
various ligands that utilize TLR2 or TLR4. Future studies will be
needed to assess how ligand-specific interactions with TLRs result in
differential intracellular signaling pathways.
Initial studies assessing the roles of TLR2 and TLR4 suggested that these molecules mediate LPS-associated responses (9, 10). Genetic analysis of hyporesponsive mouse strains demonstrated that the defective LPS responses observed in these mice were the result of a point or null mutation in TLR4 (15). By using TLR2 and TLR4 knockout mice, it was shown that TLR4, and not TLR2, appears to be the functional LPS-signaling receptor for enterobacterial LPS (17). Furthermore, it was demonstrated that the removal of impurities within LPS preparations abrogated the ability of enterobacterial LPS to utilize TLR2, but not TLR4 (18, 20). In contrast, a recent study by Werts et al. (55) assessing the TLR usage of phenol-reextracted Leptospira interrogans LPS demonstrated that TLR2, but not TLR4, was involved in the innate immune response to this type of LPS. Additional studies assessing the ability of other nonenterobacterial LPS to signal via TLRs have demonstrated that LPS derived from P. gingivalis or Prevotella intermedia stimulate mice defective in TLR4 signaling even after repurification and removal of endotoxin contaminants (21). These studies also demonstrated that LPS from Rhodobacter sphaeroides, which is known to antagonize enterobacterial LPS, did not inhibit cytokine responses induced by reextracted P. gingivalis or P. intermedia (21, 56). Evidence for the ability of protein-free P. gingivalis LPS to utilize TLR2 and not TLR4 was shown by Hirschfeld et al. (26) using murine macrophages and human cell lines deficient in TLR2 or TLR4. These studies also demonstrated no quantitative or qualitative differences in the ability of P. gingivalis LPS to induce cellular responses in mice possessing a defect in TLR4 signaling compared with wild-type controls. Our results confirm and extend these findings by demonstrating that TLR2, and not TLR4, is the predominant TLR utilized by P. gingivalis LPS for the induction of cytokine responses by human monocytes, thus providing further evidence that some nonenterobacterial LPS may be utilizing different TLR-signaling pathways than enterobacterial LPS.
The human TLRs have been shown to share considerable structural and
functional homology with the IL-1R pathway. The extracellular portion
of TLRs contains leucine-rich repeat regions, while the cytoplasmic
domain possesses sequence homology to the IL-1
-like pathway
(57, 58). Both the IL-1
and TLR pathways utilize
similar signaling components, including MyD88, IL-1R-associated kinase,
and TNFR-activated factor 6, which ultimately leads to the induction of
genes via the activation of NF-
B (59, 60, 61, 62). A surprising
finding in our study was the reduction for IL-1
, but not TNF-
or
IL-6 production, following a second exposure to P.
gingivalis LPS. One explanation for these results is that P.
gingivalis LPS is a relatively weak inducer of IL-6, TNF-
, and
IL-1
; however, it is a powerful inducer of IL-1R antagonist (IL-1ra)
(44). Thus, if P. gingivalis LPS primes cells
for enhanced induction of IL-1ra during subsequent challenge, then
IL-1ra could inhibit the positive feedback loop for IL-1 production by
inhibiting IL-1 binding to its receptor. This could explain the reduced
levels of IL-1
during a secondary challenge with P.
gingivalis LPS. Furthermore, it could help explain, in part, the
inability to induce a refractory state for TNF-
and IL-6 production
upon a secondary stimulation. In support of this possibility, Henricson
et al. (63) demonstrated that administration of rIL-1ra to
mice could reduce the ability of E. coli LPS to induce
endotoxin tolerance. It has also been reported that pretreatment of
macrophages with IL-1
induces a state of cross-tolerization to LPS
(35). Thus, the ability to inhibit or reduce signaling via
the IL-1 pathway during LPS exposure may alter the induction of
endotoxin tolerance.
Activation of the transcriptional factor, NF-
B, is regulated by its
association in the cytoplasm with I-
B proteins. These inhibitory
proteins mask the nuclear localization signal present in NF-
B, and
thus prevent NF-
B from translocating into the nucleus. The
best-characterized I-
B proteins are I-
B-
and I-
B-
.
Although both of these proteins are involved in NF-
B translocation
into the nucleus, the activation of NF-
B results in a positive
feedback loop by which transcription of I-
B-
is increased and
thus serves to inhibit NF-
B translocation (46). In
contrast, I-
B-
levels remain low until the signal-inducing
NF-
B is attenuated. Our study demonstrated that pretreatment of
THP-1 cells with E. coli LPS severely decreased
the ability of I-
B-
and I-
B-
proteins to be degraded upon a
secondary stimulation. These findings are in agreement with previous
observations demonstrating the inability of endotoxin-tolerant
macrophages to degrade I-
B-
or I-
B-
proteins and correlate
with the down-regulation of upstream LPS-signaling molecules
(35). In contrast, THP-1 cells pretreated with P.
gingivalis LPS exhibited an ability to degrade I-
B-
, but not
I-
B-
. It has been suggested that I-
B-
and I-
B-
proteins can be involved in different NF-
B-signaling pathways
(64). In this regard, Beg et al. demonstrated that
I-
B-
-deficient fibroblasts exhibited normal signal-dependent
NF-
B activation, which correlated with I-
B-
degradation. It
was concluded that I-
B-
, but not I-
B-
, was needed for
signal-induced NF-
B activation, while I-
B-
was required for
suppression of NF-
B activity after stimulation was induced
(64). These findings are in agreement with our present
findings in which P. gingivalis LPS exhibited no significant
ability to degrade I-
B-
upon primary or secondary exposure.
Therefore, the ability to differentially degrade I-
B-
and
I-
B-
upon reexposure of THP-1 cells to P. gingivalis
LPS suggests that the levels of I-
B-
may be responsible for the
ability to induce secondary LPS-associated cellular responses.
Adult periodontitis is characterized by a chronic inflammatory process
that brings about the destruction of the periodontium over a period of
years (37, 38). Studies have shown that the LPS of
P. gingivalis plays an important role in this disease
(37, 38, 40). Our study demonstrated that P.
gingivalis LPS induced much lower levels of the proinflammatory
cytokines IL-1
, IL-6, and TNF-
than E. coli LPS, and
did not mitigate TNF-
or IL-6 production following secondary
stimulation of human monocytes. Interestingly, it has also been shown
that P. gingivalis LPS fails to induce IL-12 and IFN-
mRNA production from peritoneal macrophages, which may aid in the
clearance of this bacterium (26). Taken together, these
observations suggest that the low toxicity of P. gingivalis
LPS and the pattern of proinflammatory cytokines induced after primary
and secondary stimulation could contribute to the chronicity of
periodontal infection. Furthermore, our findings reported in this work
support the notion that TLR regulation is, in part, one of the
mechanisms involved with monocytes acquiring endotoxin tolerance and
suggest a novel ability of P. gingivalis LPS to circumvent
the induction of hyporesponsiveness.
| Acknowledgments |
|---|
| Footnotes |
|---|
2 Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Suzanne Michalek, Department of Microbiology, University of Alabama, 845 19th Street South, BBRB 258/5, Birmingham, AL 35294. E-mail address: suemich{at}uab.edu ![]()
3 Abbreviations used in this paper: TLR, Toll-like receptor; IL-1ra, IL-1R antagonist. ![]()
Received for publication June 25, 2001. Accepted for publication September 4, 2001.
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