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Proinflammatory fecal mRNA and childhood bacterial enteric infections

William E Bennett1, Rosbel González-Rivera, Bao N Puente

  • 1Washington University School of Medicine; Department of Pediatrics; Division of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition; St. Louis, MO USA.

Gut Microbes
|February 18, 2011
PubMed

Insights

Measuring specific messenger RNA (mRNA) in stool can noninvasively assess gastrointestinal inflammation. Infected children showed higher levels of certain inflammatory markers like IL-8 mRNA compared to controls.

Area of Science:

  • Gastroenterology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Infectious Disease

Background:

  • Assessment of specific mRNAs in human samples is useful in characterizing disease.
  • mRNA in human stool has been understudied.
  • Gastrointestinal inflammation is a key factor in various diseases.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the utility of quantifying specific mRNAs in human stool for assessing gastrointestinal inflammation.
  • To compare mRNA levels of inflammatory markers between infected children and healthy controls.

Main Methods:

  • Fecal RNA was purified from 46 infected children (Campylobacter jejuni, E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella spp., Shigella sonnei) and 26 controls.
  • Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) was used to compare mRNA proportions of IL-1β, IL-8, osteoprotegerin, and calprotectin.
  • Enzyme immunoassays (EIA) were used to determine protein concentrations of calprotectin, IL-8, and osteoprotegerin.

Main Results:

  • Infected stools showed increased transcripts of IL-1β, IL-8, and calprotectin compared to controls.
  • mRNA and protein concentrations correlated for IL-8.
  • Correlation was not observed between mRNA and protein concentrations for calprotectin.

Conclusions:

  • Stool mRNA quantification is a potentially useful, noninvasive method for assessing gastrointestinal inflammation.
  • This method may offer greater sensitivity than enzyme immunoassays for detecting inflammation.

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