Leptospira interrogans causes quantitative and morphological disturbances in adherens junctions and other biological groups of proteins in human endothelial cells.

Pathogenic Leptospira transmits from animals to humans, causing the zoonotic life-threatening infection called leptospirosis. This infection is reported worldwide with higher risk in tropical regions. Symptoms of leptospirosis range from mild illness to severe illness such as liver damage, kidney failure, respiratory distress, meningitis, and fatal hemorrhagic disease. Invasive species of Leptospira rapidly disseminate to multiple tissues where this bacterium damages host endothelial cells, increasing vascular permeability. Despite the burden in humans and animals, the pathogenic mechanisms of Leptospira infection remain to be elucidated. The pathogenic leptospires adhere to endothelial cells and permeabilize endothelial barriers in vivo and in vitro. In this study, human endothelial cells were infected with the pathogenic L. interrogans serovar Copenhageni or the saprophyte L. biflexa serovar Patoc to investigate morphological changes and other distinctive phenotypes of host cell proteins by fluorescence microscopy. Among those analyzed, 17 proteins from five biological classes demonstrated distinctive phenotypes in morphology and/or signal intensity upon infection with Leptospira. The affected biological groups include: 1) extracellular matrix, 2) intercellular adhesion molecules and cell surface receptors, 3) intracellular proteins, 4) cell-cell junction proteins, and 5) a cytoskeletal protein. Infection with the pathogenic strain most profoundly disturbed the biological structures of adherens junctions (VE-cadherin and catenins) and actin filaments. Our data illuminate morphological disruptions and reduced signals of cell-cell junction proteins and filamentous actin in L. interrogans-infected endothelial cells. In addition, Leptospira infection, regardless of pathogenic status, influenced other host proteins belonging to multiple biological classes. Our data suggest that this zoonotic agent may damage endothelial cells via multiple cascades or pathways including endothelial barrier damage and inflammation, potentially leading to vascular hyperpermeability and severe illness in vivo. This work provides new insights into the pathophysiological mechanisms of Leptospira infection.

Exploiting the Gastric Epithelial Barrier: Helicobacter pylori's Attack on Tight and Adherens Junctions.

Highly organized intercellular tight and adherens junctions are crucial structural components for establishing and maintenance of epithelial barrier functions, which control the microbiota and protect against intruding pathogens in humans. Alterations in these complexes represent key events in the development and progression of multiple infectious diseases as well as various cancers. The gastric pathogen Helicobacter pylori exerts an amazing set of strategies to manipulate these epithelial cell-to-cell junctions, which are implicated in changing cell polarity, migration and invasive growth as well as pro-inflammatory and proliferative responses. This chapter focuses on the H. pylori pathogenicity factors VacA, CagA, HtrA and urease, and how they can induce host cell signaling involved in altering cell-to-cell permeability. We propose a stepwise model for how H. pylori targets components of tight and adherens junctions in order to disrupt the gastric epithelial cell layer, giving fresh insights into the pathogenesis of this important bacterium.

Adherens junctions as targets of microorganisms: a focus on Helicobacter pylori.

Mucosal epithelia are targeted by several microorganisms as a way of adhesion, internalization, and/or exploitation of the host properties to induce disease. Helicobacter pylori are worldwide prevalent bacteria that colonize the human stomach. Persistent infection of the gastric mucosa with H. pylori and concurrent chronic gastritis are risk factors for ulcer disease and gastric carcinoma. Therefore, interactions at the H. pylori-epithelial interface are important to understand the pathogenesis of these bacteria and the host responses that contribute to disease development. Here, we provide an overview of the interactions between microorganisms and the adherens junctions with an emphasis on H. pylori.

A common clathrin-mediated machinery co-ordinates cell-cell adhesion and bacterial internalization.

Invasive bacterial pathogens often target cellular proteins involved in adhesion as a first event during infection. For example, Listeria monocytogenes uses the bacterial protein InlA to interact with E-cadherin, hijack the host adherens junction (AJ) machinery and invade non-phagocytic cells by a clathrin-dependent mechanism. Here, we investigate a potential role for clathrin in cell-cell adhesion. We observed that the initial steps of AJ formation trigger the phosphorylation of clathrin, and its transient localization at forming cell-cell contacts. Furthermore, we show that clathrin serves as a hub for the recruitment of proteins that are necessary for the actin rearrangements that accompany the maturation of AJs. Using an InlA/E-cadherin chimera, we show that adherent cells expressing the chimera form AJs with cells expressing E-cadherin. We demonstrate that non-adherent cells expressing the InlA chimera, as bacteria, can be internalized by E-cadherin-expressing adherent cells. Together these results reveal that a common clathrin-mediated machinery may regulate internalization and cell adhesion and that the relative mobility of one of the interacting partners plays an important role in the commitment to either one of these processes.

Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. lactis R4 prevents Salmonella typhimurium SL1344-induced damage to tight junctions and adherens junctions.

Cell junctions are the gatekeepers of the paracellular route and defend the mucosal barrier. Several enteropathogenic bacteria can invade intestinal epithelial cells by targeting and damaging cell junctions. It is not well understood how Salmonella typhimurium is able to overcome the intestinal barrier and gain access to the circulation, nor is it understood how Lactobacillus prevents the invasion of S. typhimurium. Therefore, we sought to determine whether infection with S. typhimurium SL1344 could regulate the molecular composition of cell junctions and whether Lactobacillus delbrueckii ssp. lactis R4 could affect this modification. Our data demonstrated that infection of Caco-2 cells with S. typhimurium over 2 h resulted in a redistribution of claudin-1, ZO-1, occluding, and E-cadherin. Western blot analysis of epithelial cell lysates demonstrated that S. typhimurium could decrease the expression of cell junction proteins. However, L. delbrueckii ssp. lactis R4 ameliorated this destruction and induced increased expression of ZO-1, occludin, and E-cadherin relative to the levels in the control group. The results of these experiments implied that S. typhimurium may facilitate its uptake and distribution within the host by regulating the molecular composition of cell junctions. Furthermore, Lactobacillus may prevent the adhesion and invasion of pathogenic bacteria by maintaining cell junctions and the mucosal barrier.

Neisseria gonorrhoeae induced disruption of cell junction complexes in epithelial cells of the human genital tract.

Pathogenic microorganisms, such as Neisseria gonorrhoeae, have developed mechanisms to alter epithelial barriers in order to reach subepithelial tissues for host colonization. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of gonococci on cell junction complexes of genital epithelial cells of women. Polarized Ishikawa cells, a cell line derived from endometrial epithelium, were used for experimental infection. Infected cells displayed a spindle-like shape with an irregular distribution, indicating potential alteration of cell-cell contacts. Accordingly, analysis by confocal microscopy and cellular fractionation revealed that gonococci induced redistribution of the adherens junction proteins E-cadherin and its adapter protein ß-catenin from the membrane to a cytoplasmic pool, with no significant differences in protein levels. In contrast, gonococcal infection did not induce modification of either expression or distribution of the tight junction proteins Occludin and ZO-1. Similar results were observed for Fallopian tube epithelia. Interestingly, infected Ishikawa cells also showed an altered pattern of actin cytoskeleton, observed in the form of stress fibers across the cytoplasm, which in turn matched a strong alteration on the expression of fibronectin, an adhesive glycoprotein component of extracellular matrix. Interestingly, using western blotting, activation of the ERK pathway was detected after gonococcal infection while p38 pathway was not activated. All effects were pili and Opa independent. Altogether, results indicated that gonococcus, as a mechanism of pathogenesis, induced disruption of junction complexes with early detaching of E-cadherin and ß-catenin from the adherens junction complex, followed by a redistribution and reorganization of actin cytoskeleton and fibronectin within the extracellular matrix.

The host adherens junction molecule nectin-1 is degraded by chlamydial protease-like activity factor (CPAF) in Chlamydia trachomatis-infected genital epithelial cells.

Nectin-1 is an adhesion protein implicated in the organization of adherens junctions and tight junctions in epithelial cells. Previous studies in our laboratory demonstrated that nectin-1 accumulation was significantly decreased in Chlamydia trachomatis-infected HeLa cells. In the present study, Western blot analyses indicated that nectin-1 down-regulation was C. trachomatis concentration-dependent. The half-life of nectin-1 was also greatly diminished in C. trachomatis-infected cells compared to that observed in mock-infected cells, indicating that nectin-1 was likely down-regulated post-translationally. The chlamydia-secreted protease CPAF is known to degrade several important host proteins; CPAF expression within infected cells correlated with the time-dependent cleavage of nectin-1. Notably, CPAF proteolytic activity is inhibited by lactacystin but not by the proteosome inhibitor MG132. In vivo inhibition experiments demonstrated that nectin-1 down-regulation was blocked by lactacystin exposure. In contrast, MG132 had no effect. Finally, cell-free cleavage assays demonstrated that functional recombinant GST-CPAF(wt) protein degrades nectin-1. This degradation was blocked by lactacystin, as previously observed in vivo. Collectively, these results indicate that nectin-1 is degraded by CPAF in C. trachomatis-infected cells, a novel strategy that chlamydiae may use to aid their dissemination.

The host adherens junction molecule nectin-1 is downregulated in Chlamydia trachomatis-infected genital epithelial cells.

Nectin-1, a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily, is a Ca(2+)-independent cell adhesion protein implicated in the organization of E-cadherin-based adherens junctions (AJs) and claudin-based tight junctions (TJs) in epithelial cells. Nectin-1 also regulates cell-cell adhesion and cell polarization in a Cdc42- and Rac-dependent manner. Western blot analyses demonstrated that accumulation of host nectin-1 is decreased by 85 % at 48 hours post-infection (h.p.i.) in Chlamydia trachomatis serovar E-infected HeLa cells. Time-course experiments demonstrated that this decrease was sustained to 60 h.p.i. Nectin-1 downregulation in C. trachomatis-infected cells was prevented by both chloramphenicol exposure and prior inactivation of the chlamydiae with UV light, demonstrating that active C. trachomatis replication was required. Penicillin G-exposure studies demonstrated that nectin-1 accumulation was also altered during persistent infection. Finally, RT-PCR analyses indicated that chlamydial infection did not alter accumulation of any nectin-1 transcripts, demonstrating that nectin-1 accumulation is reduced at a post-transcriptional level. Intesrestingly, N-cadherin-dependent cell-cell junctions can be disrupted by C. trachomatis infection, as reported by Prozialeck et al. (2002). Because interaction of nectin molecules on adjacent cells is essential for AJ formation, these data suggest that C. trachomatis may disrupt AJs, at least in part, by diminishing nectin-1 accumulation. Notably, release of chlamydiae-infected epithelial cells has been observed both in vitro from polarized monolayers and in vivo from tissues, suggesting that chlamydia-modulated downregulation of adhesion molecules and the subsequent disruption of host cell adherence may be involved in chlamydial dissemination or pathogenesis.

Host defenses to Rickettsia rickettsii infection contribute to increased microvascular permeability in human cerebral endothelial cells.

Rickettsiae are arthropod-borne intracellular bacterial pathogens that primarily infect the microvascular endothelium leading to systemic spread of the organisms and the major pathophysiological effect, increased microvascular permeability, and edema in vital organs such as the lung and brain. Much work has been done on mechanisms of immunity to rickettsiae, as well as the responses of endothelial cells to rickettsial invasion. However, to date, no one has described the mechanisms of increased microvascular permeability during acute rickettsiosis. We sought to establish an in vitro model of human endothelial-target rickettsial infection using the etiological agent of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Rickettsia rickettsii, and human cerebral microvascular endothelial cells. Endothelial cells infected with R. rickettsii exhibited a dose-dependent decrease in trans-endothelial electrical resistance, which translates into increased monolayer permeability. Additionally, we showed that the addition of pro-inflammatory stimuli essential to rickettsial immunity dramatically enhanced this effect. This increase in permeability correlates with dissociation of adherens junctions between endothelial cells and is not dependent on the presence of nitric oxide. Taken together, these results demonstrate for the first time that increased microvascular permeability associated with rickettsial infection is partly attributable to intracellular rickettsiae and partly attributable to the immune defenses that have evolved to protect the host from rickettsial spread.

Changes in the adherens junctions of human endothelial cells infected with spotted fever group rickettsiae.

Rickettsiae of the spotted fever group are obligately intracellular bacteria that primarily infect the vascular endothelium, invade adjacent cells propelled by actin polymerization, and cause severe systemic diseases. Endothelial dysfunction and vascular leakage develop as a consequence; this effect is the pathophysiological mechanism that explains most clinical manifestations. Here we report that rickettsial infection of cultured primary human endothelial cells is associated with the formation of gaps in the interendothelial adherens junctions, occurring late during the course of in vitro infections but not early, even when rickettsial loads are significant.