Seizure-induced neuronal death is suppressed in the absence of the endogenous lectin Galectin-1.

Pilocarpine injection induces epileptic seizures in rodents, an experimental paradigm extensively used to model temporal lobe epilepsy in humans. It includes conspicuous neuronal death in the forebrain and previous work has demonstrated an involvement of the neurotrophin receptor p75(NTR) in this process. Following the identification of Galectin-1 (Gal-1) as a downstream effector of p75(NTR), we examine here the role of this endogenous lectin in pilocarpine-induced cell death in adult mice. We found that most somatostatin-positive neurons also express Gal-1 and that in mice lacking the corresponding gene Lgals1, pilocarpine-induced neuronal death was essentially abolished in the forebrain. We also found that the related lectin Galectin-3 (Gal-3) was strongly upregulated by pilocarpine in microglial cells. This upregulation was absent in Lgals1 mutants and our results with Lgals3-null animals show that Gal-3 is not required for neuronal death in the hippocampus. These findings provide new insights into the roles and regulation of endogenous lectins in the adult CNS and a surprisingly selective proapoptotic role of Gal-1 for a subpopulation of GABAergic interneurons.

Crystal structure of Drosophila PGRP-SD suggests binding to DAP-type but not lysine-type peptidoglycan.

In Drosophila the synthesis of antimicrobial peptides in response to microbial infections is under the control of the Toll and immune deficiency (Imd) signaling pathways. The Toll signaling pathway responds mainly to Gram-positive bacterial and fungal infection while the Imd pathway mediates the response to Gram-negative bacteria. Microbial recognition upstream of Toll involves, at least in part, peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGRPs). The sensing of Gram-positive bacteria is mediated by the pattern recognition receptors PGRP-SA and Gram-negative binding protein 1 (GNBP1) that cooperate to detect the presence of lysine-type peptidoglycan in the host. Recently it has been shown that a loss-of-function mutation in peptidoglycan recognition protein SD (PGRP-SD) severely exacerbates the PGRP-SA and GNBP1 mutant phenotypes. Here we have solved the crystal structure of PGRP-SD at 1.5A resolution. Comparison with available structures of PGRPs in complex with their peptidoglycan (PGN) ligand strongly suggests a diaminopimelic acid (DAP) specificity for PGRP-SD. This result is supported by pull-down assays with insoluble PGNs. In addition we show that Toll pathway activation after infection by DAP-type PGN containing bacteria is clearly reduced in PGRP-SD mutant flies. Our hypothesis is that the role of PGRP-SD is the recognition of DAP-type PGNs responsible for the activation of the Toll pathway by Gram-negative bacteria.

Downregulation of the Drosophila immune response by peptidoglycan-recognition proteins SC1 and SC2.

Peptidoglycan-recognition proteins (PGRPs) are evolutionarily conserved molecules that are structurally related to bacterial amidases. Several Drosophila PGRPs have lost this enzymatic activity and serve as microbe sensors through peptidoglycan recognition. Other PGRP family members, such as Drosophila PGRP-SC1 or mammalian PGRP-L, have conserved the amidase function and are able to cleave peptidoglycan in vitro. However, the contribution of these amidase PGRPs to host defense in vivo has remained elusive so far. Using an RNA-interference approach, we addressed the function of two PGRPs with amidase activity in the Drosophila immune response. We observed that PGRP-SC1/2-depleted flies present a specific over-activation of the IMD (immune deficiency) signaling pathway after bacterial challenge. Our data suggest that these proteins act in the larval gut to prevent activation of this pathway following bacterial ingestion. We further show that a strict control of IMD-pathway activation is essential to prevent bacteria-induced developmental defects and larval death.

The Drosophila peptidoglycan recognition protein PGRP-LF blocks PGRP-LC and IMD/JNK pathway activation.

Eukaryotic peptidoglycan recognition proteins (PGRPs) are related to bacterial amidases. In Drosophila, PGRPs bind peptidoglycan and function as central sensors and regulators of the innate immune response. PGRP-LC/PGRP-LE constitute the receptor complex in the immune deficiency (IMD) pathway, which is an innate immune cascade triggered upon Gram-negative bacterial infection. Here, we present the functional analysis of the nonamidase, membrane-associated PGRP-LF. We show that PGRP-LF acts as a specific negative regulator of the IMD pathway. Reduction of PGRP-LF levels, in the absence of infection, is sufficient to trigger IMD pathway activation. Furthermore, normal development is impaired in the absence of functional PGRP-LF, a phenotype mediated by the JNK pathway. Thus, PGRP-LF prevents constitutive activation of both the JNK and the IMD pathways. We propose a model in which PGRP-LF keeps the Drosophila IMD pathway silent by sequestering circulating peptidoglycan.

Function of the drosophila pattern-recognition receptor PGRP-SD in the detection of Gram-positive bacteria.

The activation of an immune response requires recognition of microorganisms by host receptors. In drosophila, detection of Gram-positive bacteria is mediated by cooperation between the peptidoglycan-recognition protein-SA (PGRP-SA) and Gram-negative binding protein 1 (GNBP1) proteins. Here we show that some Gram-positive bacterial species activate an immune response in a PGRP-SA- and GNBP1-independent manner, indicating that alternative receptors exist. Consistent with this, we noted that PGRP-SD mutants were susceptible to some Gram-positive bacteria and that a loss-of-function mutation in PGRP-SD severely exacerbated the PGRP-SA and GNBP1 mutant phenotypes. These data indicate that PGRP-SD can function as a receptor for Gram-positive bacteria and shows partial redundancy with the PGRP-SA-GNBP1 complex.