Informacja

Drogi użytkowniku, aplikacja do prawidłowego działania wymaga obsługi JavaScript. Proszę włącz obsługę JavaScript w Twojej przeglądarce.

Tytuł pozycji:

Anthrax toxin component, Protective Antigen, protects insects from bacterial infections.

Anthrax is a major zoonotic disease of wildlife, and in places like West Africa, it can be caused by Bacillus anthracis in arid nonsylvatic savannahs, and by B. cereus biovar anthracis (Bcbva) in sylvatic rainforests. Bcbva-caused anthrax has been implicated in as much as 38% of mortality in rainforest ecosystems, where insects can enhance the transmission of anthrax-causing bacteria. While anthrax is well-characterized in mammals, its transmission by insects points to an unidentified anthrax-resistance mechanism in its vectors. In mammals, a secreted anthrax toxin component, 83 kDa Protective Antigen (PA83), binds to cell-surface receptors and is cleaved by furin into an evolutionary-conserved PA20 and a pore-forming PA63 subunits. We show that PA20 increases the resistance of Drosophila flies and Culex mosquitoes to bacterial challenges, without directly affecting the bacterial growth. We further show that the PA83 loop known to be cleaved by furin to release PA20 from PA63 is, in part, responsible for the PA20-mediated protection. We found that PA20 binds directly to the Toll activating peptidoglycan-recognition protein-SA (PGRP-SA) and that the Toll/NF-κB pathway is necessary for the PA20-mediated protection of infected flies. This effect of PA20 on innate immunity may also exist in mammals: we show that PA20 binds to human PGRP-SA ortholog. Moreover, the constitutive activity of Imd/NF-κB pathway in MAPKK Dsor1 mutant flies is sufficient to confer the protection from bacterial infections in a manner that is independent of PA20 treatment. Lastly, Clostridium septicum alpha toxin protects flies from anthrax-causing bacteria, showing that other pathogens may help insects resist anthrax. The mechanism of anthrax resistance in insects has direct implications on insect-mediated anthrax transmission for wildlife management, and with potential for applications, such as reducing the sensitivity of pollinating insects to bacterial pathogens. Author summary: Gram-positive Bacillus anthracis and B. cereus biovar anthracis cause anthrax in mammals by secreting anthrax toxin. Recent studies report the devastating ecological effects anthrax has on the wildlife in areas like tropical rainforests, where in the past 26 years, anthrax had been implicated in 38% of wildlife mortality, and where insects can act as the vectors for anthrax transmission. The anthrax-resistance mechanism in its insect vectors has not been identified. We discovered that one of anthrax toxin components reduces the sensitivity of insects to anthrax-causing bacilli and other bacteria, and that insect immunity Toll/NF-κB and Imd/NF-κB pathways play a role in this toxin-mediated protection. The toxin-mediated protection of insects would benefit the anthrax-causing bacteria by extending the lifespan of vectors and enhancing the pathogen transmission. Anthrax toxin component activation of NF-κB has also been found to exists in humans. Moreover, the activation of the innate NF-κB-dependent immunity by this anthrax toxin component has potential implications in protecting pollinating insects from bacterial pathogens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of PLoS Pathogens is the property of Public Library of Science and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Zaloguj się, aby uzyskać dostęp do pełnego tekstu.

Ta witryna wykorzystuje pliki cookies do przechowywania informacji na Twoim komputerze. Pliki cookies stosujemy w celu świadczenia usług na najwyższym poziomie, w tym w sposób dostosowany do indywidualnych potrzeb. Korzystanie z witryny bez zmiany ustawień dotyczących cookies oznacza, że będą one zamieszczane w Twoim komputerze. W każdym momencie możesz dokonać zmiany ustawień dotyczących cookies