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IL-6-Caspase 3 Axis Plays an Important Role in Enteritis Caused by Legionella pneumophila Pulmonary Infection
Dahui Zhao1,2, Xuefeng Duan1,2, Li Zhu1
1CAS Key Laboratory of Pathogen Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Microbiology, Center for Influenza Research and Early-Warning (CASCIRE), CAS-TWAS Center of Excellence for Emerging Infectious Diseases (CEEID), Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
Background:
Since Legionella pneumophila (Lp) is widely present in natural and artificial water environments, it has a high potential risk of outbreak. Diarrhea caused by Lp pulmonary infection is an important symptom of Legionnaires' disease (LD); however, the underlying mechanism of the diarrhea has not yet been revealed. This not only has a negative impact on clinical diagnosis and treatment, but may also cause misdiagnosis.
Methods:
In the present study, a mouse model of enteritis caused by pulmonary infection of Lp was established. By using this mouse model, we explored the underlying mechanisms of the enteritis caused by Lp pulmonary infection.
Results:
The results indicated that the systemic inflammatory response played a very important role in the enteritis phenotype caused by a strong-virulence strain of Lp. Furthermore, we found that the expression of Bcl-2 was downregulated by IL-6 through the p53 signaling pathway, thereby activating the caspase 3 of intestinal epithelial cells (IECs), causing the apoptosis of IECs, and ultimately leading to the enteritis phenotype.
Conclusions:
The IL-6-caspase 3 axis plays an important role in enteritis caused by Lp pulmonary infection.
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