Highly fluorescent GFPm 2+ -based genome integration-proficient promoter probe vector to study Mycobacterium tuberculosis promoters in infected macrophages.

Study of activity of cloned promoters in slow-growing Mycobacterium tuberculosis during long-term growth conditions in vitro or inside macrophages, requires a genome-integration proficient promoter probe vector, which can be stably maintained even without antibiotics, carrying a substrate-independent, easily scorable and highly sensitive reporter gene. In order to meet this requirement, we constructed pAKMN2, which contains mycobacterial codon-optimized gfp(m) (2+) gene, coding for GFP(m) (2+) of highest fluorescence reported till date, mycobacteriophage L5 attP-int sequence for genome integration, and a multiple cloning site. pAKMN2 showed stable integration and expression of GFP(m) (2+) from M. tuberculosis and M. smegmatis genome. Expression of GFP(m) (2+), driven by the cloned minimal promoters of M. tuberculosis cell division gene, ftsZ (MtftsZ), could be detected in the M. tuberculosis/pAKMN2-promoter integrants, growing at exponential phase in defined medium in vitro and inside macrophages. Stable expression from genome-integrated format even without antibiotic, and high sensitivity of detection by flow cytometry and fluorescence imaging, in spite of single copy integration, make pAKMN2 useful for the study of cloned promoters of any mycobacterial species under long-term in vitro growth or stress conditions, or inside macrophages.

The multifunctional PE_PGRS11 protein from Mycobacterium tuberculosis plays a role in regulating resistance to oxidative stress.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis utilizes unique strategies to survive amid the hostile environment of infected host cells. Infection-specific expression of a unique mycobacterial cell surface antigen that could modulate key signaling cascades can act as a key survival strategy in curtailing host effector responses like oxidative stress. We demonstrate here that hypothetical PE_PGRS11 ORF encodes a functional phosphoglycerate mutase. The transcriptional analysis revealed that PE_PGRS11 is a hypoxia-responsive gene, and enforced expression of PE_PGRS11 by recombinant adenovirus or Mycobacterium smegmatis imparted resistance to alveolar epithelial cells against oxidative stress. PE_PGRS11-induced resistance to oxidative stress necessitated the modulation of genetic signatures like induced expression of Bcl2 or COX-2. This modulation of specific antiapoptotic molecular signatures involved recognition of PE_PGRS11 by TLR2 and subsequent activation of the PI3K-ERK1/2-NF-κB signaling axis. Furthermore, PE_PGRS11 markedly diminished H(2)O(2)-induced p38 MAPK activation. Interestingly, PE_PGRS11 protein was exposed at the mycobacterial cell surface and was involved in survival of mycobacteria under oxidative stress. Furthermore, PE_PGRS11 displayed differential B cell responses during tuberculosis infection. Taken together, our investigation identified PE_PGRS11 as an in vivo expressed immunodominant antigen that plays a crucial role in modulating cellular life span restrictions imposed during oxidative stress by triggering TLR2-dependent expression of COX-2 and Bcl2. These observations clearly provide a mechanistic basis for the rescue of pathogenic Mycobacterium-infected lung epithelial cells from oxidative stress.

Nitric oxide is involved in Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin-activated Jagged1 and Notch1 signaling.

Pathogenic mycobacteria have evolved unique strategies to survive within the hostile environment of macrophages. Modulation of key signaling cascades by NO, generated by the host during infection, assumes critical importance in overall cell-fate decisions. We show that NO is a critical factor in Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin-mediated Notch1 activation, as the generation of activated Notch1 or expression of Notch1 target genes matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) or Hes1 was abrogated in macrophages derived from inducible NO synthase (iNOS) knockout (iNOS(-/-)), but not from wild-type, mice. Interestingly, expression of the Notch1 ligand Jagged1 was compromised in M. bovis bacillus Calmette-Guérin-stimulated iNOS(-/-) macrophages, and loss of Jagged1 expression or Notch1 signaling could be rescued by NO donors. Signaling perturbations or genetic approaches implicated that robust expression of MMP-9 or Hes1 required synergy and cross talk between TLR2 and canonical Notch1-PI3K cascade. Further, CSL/RBP-Jk contributed to TLR2-mediated expression of MMP-9 or Hes1. Correlative evidence shows that, in a murine model for CNS tuberculosis, this mechanism operates in vivo only in brains derived from WT but not from iNOS(-/-) mice. Importantly, we demonstrate the activation of Notch1 signaling in vivo in granulomatous lesions in the brains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis-infected human patients with tuberculous meningitis. Current investigation identifies NO as a pathological link that modulates direct cooperation of TLR2 with Notch1-PI3K signaling or Jagged1 to regulate specific components of TLR2 responses. These findings provide new insights into mechanisms by which Notch1, TLR2, and NO signals are integrated in a cross talk that modulates a defined set of effector functions in macrophages.

PE_PGRS antigens of Mycobacterium tuberculosis induce maturation and activation of human dendritic cells.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the causative agent of pulmonary tuberculosis, infects one-third of the world's population. Activation of host immune responses for containment of mycobacterial infections involves participation of innate immune cells, such as dendritic cells (DCs). DCs are sentinels of the immune system and are important for eliciting both primary and secondary immune responses to pathogens. In this context, to understand the molecular pathogenesis of tuberculosis and host response to mycobacteria and to conceive prospective vaccine candidates, it is important to understand how cell wall Ags of M. tuberculosis and, in particular, the proline-glutamic acid_polymorphic guanine-cytosine-rich sequence (PE_PGRS) family of proteins modulate DC maturation and function. In this study, we demonstrate that two cell wall-associated/secretory PE_PGRS proteins, PE_PGRS 17 (Rv0978c) and PE_PGRS 11 (Rv0754), recognize TLR2, induce maturation and activation of human DCs, and enhance the ability of DCs to stimulate CD4(+) T cells. We further found that PE_PGRS protein-mediated activation of DCs involves participation of ERK1/2, p38 MAPK, and NF-kappaB signaling pathways. Priming of human DCs with IFN-gamma further augmented PE_PGRS 17 or PE_PGRS 11 Ag-induced DC maturation and secretion of key proinflammatory cytokines. Our results suggest that by activating DCs, PE_PGRS proteins, important mycobacterial cell wall Ags, could potentially contribute in the initiation of innate immune responses during tuberculosis infection and hence regulate the clinical course of tuberculosis.

SOCS3 expression induced by PIM2 requires PKC and PI3K signaling.

Initiation of proinflammatory host immunity in response to infection represents as a key event in effective control and containment of the pathogen at the site of infection as well as in elicitation of robust immune memory responses. In the current investigation, we demonstrate that an integral cell wall antigen of the mycobacterial envelope, Phosphatidyl-myo-inositol dimannosides (PIM2) triggers Suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS) 3 expression in macrophages in a Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2)-MyD88 dependent manner. Data derived from signaling perturbations suggest the involvement of phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K) and protein kinase C (PKC) signaling pathways during PIM2 induced SOCS3 expression. Further, pharmacological inhibition of ERK1/2, but not of p38 MAP kinase or JNK abrogated the induced expression of SOCS3. The PIM2 induced activation of ERK1/2 was dependent on the activation of PI3K or PKC signaling which in turn regulated p65 nuclear factor -kappaB (NF-kappaB) nuclear translocation. Overall, current study delineates the role for PI3K-PKC axis and ERK1/2 signaling as key signaling events during PIM2 induced SOCS3 expression in macrophages.

PIM2 Induced COX-2 and MMP-9 expression in macrophages requires PI3K and Notch1 signaling.

Activation of inflammatory immune responses during granuloma formation by the host upon infection of mycobacteria is one of the crucial steps that is often associated with tissue remodeling and breakdown of the extracellular matrix. In these complex processes, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) plays a major role in chronic inflammation and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) significantly in tissue remodeling. In this study, we investigated the molecular mechanisms underlying Phosphatidyl-myo-inositol dimannosides (PIM2), an integral component of the mycobacterial envelope, triggered COX-2 and MMP-9 expression in macrophages. PIM2 triggers the activation of Phosphoinositide-3 Kinase (PI3K) and Notch1 signaling leading to COX-2 and MMP-9 expression in a Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2)-MyD88 dependent manner. Notch1 signaling perturbations data demonstrate the involvement of the cross-talk with members of PI3K and Mitogen activated protein kinase pathway. Enforced expression of the cleaved Notch1 in macrophages induces the expression of COX-2 and MMP-9. PIM2 triggered significant p65 nuclear factor -kappaB (NF-kappaB) nuclear translocation that was dependent on activation of PI3K or Notch1 signaling. Furthermore, COX-2 and MMP-9 expression requires Notch1 mediated recruitment of Suppressor of Hairless (CSL) and NF-kappaB to respective promoters. Inhibition of PIM2 induced COX-2 resulted in marked reduction in MMP-9 expression clearly implicating the role of COX-2 dependent signaling events in driving the MMP-9 expression. Taken together, these data implicate PI3K and Notch1 signaling as obligatory early proximal signaling events during PIM2 induced COX-2 and MMP-9 expression in macrophages.

M. bovis BCG induced expression of COX-2 involves nitric oxide-dependent and -independent signaling pathways.

In a multifaceted immunity to mycobacterial infection, induced expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) by Mycobacterium bovis bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG) may act as an important influencing factor for the effective host immunity. We here demonstrate that M. bovis BCG-triggered TLR2-dependent signaling leads to COX-2 and PGE2 expression in vitro in macrophages and in vivo in mice. Further, the presence of PGE2 could be demonstrated in sera or cerebrospinal fluid of tuberculosis patients. The induced COX-2 expression in macrophages is dependent on NF-kappaB activation, which is mediated by inducible NO synthase (iNOS)/NO-dependent participation of the members of Notch1-PI-3K signaling cascades as well as iNOS-independent activation of ERK1/2 and p38 MAPKs. Inhibition of iNOS activity abrogated the M. bovis BCG ability to trigger the generation of Notch1 intracellular domain (NICD), a marker for Notch1 signaling activation, as well as activation of the PI-3K signaling cascade. On the contrary, treatment of macrophages with 3-morpholinosydnonimine, a NO donor, resulted in a rapid increase in generation of NICD, activation of PI-3K pathway, as well as the expression of COX-2. Stable expression of NICD in RAW 264.7 macrophages resulted in augmented expression of COX-2. Further, signaling perturbations suggested the involvement of the cross-talk of Notch1 with members with the PI-3K signaling cascade. These results implicate the dichotomous nature of TLR2 signaling during M. bovis BCG-triggered expression of COX-2. In this perspective, we propose the involvement of iNOS/NO as one of the obligatory, early, proximal signaling events during M. bovis BCG-induced COX-2 expression in macrophages.

Functional characterization of the phospholipase C activity of Rv3487c and its localization on the cell wall of Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis survives and persists for prolonged periods within its host in an asymptomatic,latent state and can reactivate years later if the host's immune system weakens. The dormant bacilli synthesize and accumulate triacylglycerol, reputed to be an energy source during latency. Among the phospholipases, phospholipase C plays an important role in the pathogenesis. Mutations in a known phospholipase C, plcC, of M.tuberculosis attenuate its growth during the late phase of infection in mice. Hydrolysis of phospholipids by phospholipase C generates diacylglycerol, a well-known signalling molecule that participates in the activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK) through protein kinase C leading to macrophage activation. In the present study, we show that M.tuberculosis possesses an additional cell wall-associated protein, Rv3487c, with phospholipase C activity. The recombinant Rv3487c hydrolyses the substrate phosphatidylcholine and generates diacylglycerol by removing the phosphocholine. Furthermore, Rv3487c is expressed during infection as it exhibits significant humoral immunoreactivity with sera from children with tuberculosis, but not with that from adult patients.

NOTCH1 up-regulation and signaling involved in Mycobacterium bovis BCG-induced SOCS3 expression in macrophages.

Suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS) 3 is a critical negative regulator of cytokine signaling and is induced by Mycobacterium bovis Bacille Calmette-Guérin (M. bovis BCG) in mouse macrophages. However, little is known about the early receptor proximal signaling mechanisms underlying mycobacteria-mediated induction of SOCS3. We demonstrate here for the first time that M. bovis BCG up-regulates NOTCH1 and activates the NOTCH1 signaling pathway, leading to the expression of SOCS3. We show that perturbing Notch signaling in infected macrophages results in the marked reduction in the expression of SOCS3. Furthermore, enforced expression of the Notch1 intracellular domain in RAW 264.7 macrophages induces the expression of SOCS3, which can be further potentiated by M. bovis BCG. The perturbation of Toll-like receptor (TLR) 2 signaling resulted in marked reduction in SOCS3 levels and expression of the NOTCH1 target gene, Hes1. The down-regulation of MyD88 resulted in a significant decrease in SOCS3 expression, implicating the role of the TLR2-MyD88 axis in M. bovis BCG-triggered signaling. However, the SOCS3 inducing ability of M. bovis BCG remains unaltered also upon infection of macrophages from TLR4-defective C3H/HeJ mice. More importantly, signaling perturbation data suggest the involvement of cross-talk among members of the phosphoinositide 3-kinase and mitogen-activated protein kinase cascades with NOTCH1 signaling in SOCS3 expression. Furthermore, SOCS3 expression requires the NOTCH1-mediated recruitment of Suppressor of Hairless (CSL) and nuclear factor-kappaB to the Socs3 promoter. Overall, these results implicate NOTCH1 signaling during inducible expression of SOCS3 following infection of macrophages with an intracellular bacillus-like M. bovis BCG.

Functional role of the PE domain and immunogenicity of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis triacylglycerol hydrolase LipY.

PE and PPE proteins appear to be important for virulence and immunopathogenicity in mycobacteria, yet the functions of the PE/PPE domains remain an enigma. To decipher the role of these domains, we have characterized the triacylglycerol (TAG) hydrolase LipY from Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which is the only known PE protein expressing an enzymatic activity. The overproduction of LipY in mycobacteria resulted in a significant reduction in the pool of TAGs, consistent with the lipase activity of this enzyme. Unexpectedly, this reduction was more pronounced in mycobacteria overexpressing LipY lacking the PE domain [LipY(deltaPE)], suggesting that the PE domain participates in the modulation of LipY activity. Interestingly, Mycobacterium marinum contains a protein homologous to LipY, termed LipY(mar), in which the PE domain is substituted by a PPE domain. As for LipY, overexpression of LipY(mar) in Mycobacterium smegmatis significantly reduced the TAG pool, and this was further pronounced when the PPE domain of LipY(mar) was removed. Fractionation studies and Western blot analysis demonstrated that both LipY and LipY(deltaPE) were mainly present in the cell wall, indicating that the PE domain was not required for translocation to this site. Furthermore, electron microscopy immunolabeling of LipY(deltaPE) clearly showed a cell surface localization, thereby suggesting that the lipase may interact with the host immune system. Accordingly, a strong humoral response against LipY and LipY(deltaPE) was observed in tuberculosis patients. Together, our results suggest for the first time that both PE and PPE domains can share similar functional roles and that LipY represents a novel immunodominant antigen.

Differential B-cell responses are induced by Mycobacterium tuberculosis PE antigens Rv1169c, Rv0978c, and Rv1818c.

The multigene PE and PPE family represents about 10% of the genome of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Here, we report that three members of the PE family, namely, Rv1169c, Rv0978c, and Rv1818c, elicit a strong, but differential, B-cell humoral response among different clinical categories of tuberculosis patients. The study population (n = 211) was comprised of different clinical groups of both adult and child patients: group 1 (n = 94) patients with pulmonary infection, group 2 (n = 30) patients with relapsed infection, group 3 (n = 31) patients with extrapulmonary infections, and clinically healthy donors (n = 56). Among the PE proteins studied, group 1 adult patient sera reacted to Rv1818c and Rv0978c, while Rv1169c elicited immunoreactivity in group 3 children. However, all three PE antigens studied as well as the 19-kDa antigen did not demonstrate humoral reactivity with sera from group 2 patients with relapsed infection. The current study shows that while responsiveness to all three PE antigens is a good marker for M. tuberculosis infection, a strong response to Rv0978c or to Rv1818c by group 1 adult patients with pulmonary infection or largely restricted reactivity to Rv1169c antigen in child patients with extrapulmonary infections offers the possibility of differential utility in the serodiagnosis of tuberculosis.

Apoptosis triggered by Rv1818c, a PE family gene from Mycobacterium tuberculosis is regulated by mitochondrial intermediates in T cells.

Ectopic expression of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis PE-family gene Rv1818c, triggers apoptosis in the mammalian Jurkat T cells, which is blocked by anti-apoptotic protein Bcl-2. Although complete overlap is not observed, a considerable proportion of cellular pools of ectopically expressed Rv1818c localizes to mitochondria. However, recombinant Rv1818c does not trigger release of cytochrome c from isolated mitochondria even though Rv1818c protein induced apoptosis of Jurkat T cells. Apoptosis induced by Rv1818c is blocked by the broad-spectrum caspase inhibitory peptide zVAD-FMK. Unexpectedly, Rv1818c-induced apoptosis is not blocked in a Jurkat sub-clone deficient for caspase-8 (JI 9.2) or in cells where caspase-9 function is inhibited or expression of caspase-9 reduced by siRNA, arguing against a central role for these caspases in Rv1818c-induced apoptotic signaling. Depleting cellular pools of the mitochondrial protein Smac/DIABLO substantially reduces apoptosis consistent with mitochondrial involvement in this death pathway. We present evidence that Rv1818c-induced apoptosis is blocked by the co-transfection of an endogenous inhibitor of caspase activation, XIAP in T cells. Additionally, Rv1818c is released into extracellular environment via exosomes secreted by M. tuberculosis infected BM-DC's and macrophages. Furthermore, the extracellular Rv1818c protein can be detected in T cells co-cultured with infected BM-DC's. Taken together, these data suggest that Rv1818c-induced apoptotic signaling is likely regulated in part by the Smac-dependent activation of caspases in T cells.