Activation of NF-κB by Neisseria gonorrhoeae is associated with microcolony formation and type IV pilus retraction.

The early stage of infection with Neisseria gonorrhoeae (Ngo), the causative agent of gonorrhoea, is marked by type IV pilus (Tfp)-mediated attachment and the formation of bacterial microcolonies on epithelial cells. Retraction of the Ngo Tfp generates substantial force on its substrate which can elicit host cell signalling. Here, we observed that this retraction force could also activate nuclear factor (NF)-κB, the central signalling cascade of innate immunity. Using a p65-GFP-expressing epithelial cell line, we show that piliated Ngo induce asynchronous NF-κB activation in infected cells, which is temporally associated with the formation of gonococcal microcolonies. A mutant lacking PilT, an ATPase necessary for Tfp retraction, induced markedly reduced NF-κB activation. This was accompanied by decreased NF-κB target gene transcription and cytokine release. The impaired ability of the pilT mutant to activate NF-κB was compensated by applying mechanical shear stress to the infected host cells, indicating that the mechanical forces generated by retractile pili are involved in the retraction-dependent activation of NF-κB elicited by gonococcal microcolonies. Thus, our work provides evidence for an intriguing relationship between microcolony growth, pilus retraction and host cell signalling, with likely implications with regard to the course of symptomatic versus asymptomatic gonococcal infections.

Cytokine induction by Gram-positive bacteria.

Despite similar clinical relevance of Gram-positive and Gram-negative infections, immune activation by Gram-positive bacteria is by far less well understood than immune activation by Gram-negative bacteria. Our group has made available highly purified lipoteichoic acids (LTA) as a key Gram-positive immunostimulatory component. We have characterized the reasons for lower potency of LTA compared to Gram-negative lipopolysaccharide (LPS), identifying lack of IL-12/IFNgamma induction as a general characteristic of TLR2 agonists, and need for presentation of LTA on surfaces for enhanced immunostimulatory potency, as major aspects. Aspects of chemokine induction, where LTA is more potent than LPS, have been addressed. Furthermore, novel complement and plant defence activation, as well as CD36 as a new LTA receptor, were identified. The bacterial costimuli and modulators of LTA inducible responses are being investigated: LTA isolated from so far 16 bacterial species, although different in structure, behave remarkably similar while whole live and killed bacteria differ with regard to the pattern of induced responses. The purification and characterization of the respective components of the bacterial cell wall has begun.

The effect of hfq on global gene expression and virulence in Neisseria gonorrhoeae.

Hfq is an RNA chaperone that functions as a pleiotropic regulator for RNA metabolism in bacteria. In several pathogenic bacteria, Hfq contributes indirectly to virulence by binding to riboregulators that modulate the stability or translation efficiency of RNA transcripts. To characterize the role of Hfq in the pathogenicity of Neisseria gonorrhoeae, we generated an N. gonorrhoeae hfq mutant. Infectivity and global changes in gene expression caused by the hfq mutation in N. gonorrhoeae strain MS11 were analyzed. Transcriptional analysis using a custom-made N. gonorrhoeae microarray revealed that 369 ORFs were differentially regulated in the hfq mutant, MS11hfq, in comparison with the wild-type strain (202 were upregulated, and 167 were downregulated). The loss-of-function mutation in hfq led to pleiotropic phenotypic effects, including an altered bacterial growth rate and reduced adherence to epithelial cells. Twitching motility and microcolony formation were not affected. Hfq also appears to play a minor role in inducing the inflammatory response of infected human epithelial cells. Interleukin-8 production was slightly decreased, and activation of c-Jun N-terminal kinase, a mitogen-activated protein kinase, was reduced in MS11hfq-infected epithelial cells in comparison with wild type-infected cells. However, activation of nuclear factor kappa B, extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 and p38 remained unchanged. The data presented suggest that Hfq plays an important role as a post-transcriptional regulator in N. gonorrhoeae strain MS11 but does not contribute significantly to its virulence in cell culture models.