The Anti-Inflammatory Effects of Interferon Tau by Suppressing NF-κB/MMP9 in Macrophages Stimulated with Staphylococcus aureus

The cooperation between orf virus and Staphylococcus aureus leads to intractable lesions in skin infection

A large amount of evidence shows that different kinds of microorganisms can jointly cope with environmental pressures including cell hosts. For example, in many cases, it has been found that secondary or mixed infection of animals caused by ORFV (an epitheliophilic Parapoxvirus) and bacteria (such as Staphylococcus aureus or Streptococcus) shows a mutual aid mode that indirectly leads to the deterioration of the disease. However, the lack of research on the co-pathogenic mechanism, including how to hijack and destroy the cell host in the pathological microenvironment, has hindered the in-depth understanding of the pathogenic process and consequences of this complex infection and the development of clinical treatment methods. Here, we summarized the current strategies of trapping cell hosts together, based on the previously defined ORFV-Host (O-H) system. The opportunistic invasion of S. aureus destroyed the delicate dynamic balance of the O-H, thus aggravating tissue damage through bacterial products (mediated by Agr), even causing sepsis or inducing cytokine storms. In fact, the virus products from its adaptive regulatory system (VARS) weaken the immune attacks and block molecular pathways, so that S. aureus can settle there more smoothly, and the toxins can penetrate into local tissues more quickly. This paper focuses on the main challenges faced by cell hosts in dealing with mixed infection, which provides a starting point for us to deal with this disease in the future.

Oridonin Ameliorates Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Endometritis in Mice via Inhibition of the TLR-4/NF-κBpathway

Endometritis is a health threat to both humans and animals and poses a huge economic burden. Oridonin (Ori) is a natural diterpenoid isolated from the traditional Chinese herb Rabdosiarubescens (R. rubescens) and has multiple health-promoting effects, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antitumor effects. There is little evidence showing that Ori can effectively treat endometritis, and the relevant mechanisms need to be further clarified. In this study, we investigated the effects of Ori on LPS-induced endometritis in vivo. Additionally, we examined the effects of Ori on LPS-stimulated mouse endometrial epithelial cells (mEECs). The results showed that Ori treatment significantly alleviated LPS-induced endometritis and reduced the activity of myeloperoxidase. ELISA and qPCR results indicated that Ori dose-dependently decreased the expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-6 both in tissues and in mEECs. In addition, Ori was found to inhibit LPS-induced TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway activation. These results suggest that Ori effectively attenuates LPS-induced endometritis by inhibiting the TLR4/NF-κB signaling pathway and that Ori might be an effective drug for the prevention and treatment of LPS-induced endometritis.

Protective Effects of Interferon-tau Against Lipopolysaccharide-Induced Embryo Implantation Failure in Pregnant Mice

Interferon-tau (IFN-τ), a novel type I interferon, is produced by trophoblast cells in ruminants. Previous studies have confirmed that IFN-τ could induce immunological tolerance in humans and other species. However, there are few reports on whether IFN-τ has a protective effect on embryo implantation failure caused by excessive inflammation at the maternal-fetal interface. In our study, a mouse model of lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced implantation failure was successfully established, and we investigated the protective effects of IFN-τ. First, we showed that IFN-τ increased the number of implanted embryos in LPS-treated pregnant mice. Subsequently, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and ELISA results showed that several inflammatory cytokines [IL-1β and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α)] whose expression was upregulated by LPS were reversed by IFN-τ treatment. Furthermore, we performed Western blotting and found that IFN-τ restrained the LPS-induced phosphorylation of IκBα and NF-κB p65. Moreover, qPCR and immunohistochemistry analyses showed that IFN-τ decreased the LPS-induced expression of mouse major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I genes (H-2K and H-2D) in LPS-treated pregnant mice. Taken together, these results suggest that IFN-τ has a protective effect in LPS-induced implantation failure by downregulating MHC class I genes expression and inhibiting the production of inflammatory cytokines.

INAVA promotes aggressiveness of papillary thyroid cancer by upregulating MMP9 expression

Background

Innate immunity activator (INAVA) has been shown to be elevated in lung adenocarcinoma. However, its expression pattern and function in papillary thyroid cancer (PTC) are unknown. This study aimed to identify the clinical, biological, and mechanistic impacts of INAVA on PTC.

Methods

Using The Cancer Genome Atlas dataset, real time PCR, and immunohistochemistry, the expression of INAVA in PTC was analyzed. Gain- and loss-of-function assays were performed to investigate the role of INAVA in PTC cell invasion, migration, and metastasis. We explored the molecular mechanisms underlying the roles of INAVA in PTC cells using transcriptome resequencing, real time PCR, western blotting and immunohistochemistry.

Results

We found that INAVA expression was significantly upregulated in PTC and was significantly associated with lymph node metastasis. Loss- and gain-of-function experiments demonstrated that INAVA promoted the aggressive phenotype of PTC cells in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistic study suggested that upregulation of INAVA resulted in elevated fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF1), which in turn increased the expression level of matrix metalloproteinases 9 (MMP9). We further identified that the level of INAVA was positively correlated with the levels of FGF1 and MMP9 in clinical PTC specimens.

Conclusion

These data establish a novel role for INAVA in promoting PTC progression and suggest that INAVA may represent a therapeutic target for the disease.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (10.1186/s13578-018-0224-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Oridonin attenuates the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines in lipopolysaccharide-induced RAW264.7 cells and acute lung injury

Acute lung injury (ALI) is a life-threatening inflammatory disease owing to the lack of specific and effective therapies. Oridonin (Ori) is an active diterpenoid isolated from Rabdosiarubescens (R.rubescens) that has been shown to possess a broadspectrum pharmacological properties including anti-inflammatory, antitumour, antioxidative and neuroregulatory effects. However, its potential protective mechanism in ALI is not well characterized. In this study, we demonstrated that Ori reduces the mortality of mice with ALI induced by a high dose of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), which suggests that Ori has a protective effect on LPS induced ALI. Next, our results confirmed that Ori improves LPS-induced localized pulmonary pathology and decreased the concentration of pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α) in the serum. Nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-κB) is capable of regulating the transcription of pro-inflammatory factors. Interestingly, our results showed that Ori inhibits the expression of TLR4/MyD88 and phosphorylation of NF-κB p65 in lung tissues. To confirm this, we further validated the possible regulatory anti-inflammatory mechanisms of Ori in vitro. LPS-induced RAW264.7 cells, which are widely used as an inflammation model to evaluate the potential protective effect of drugs in vitro, were chosen for this study. Similar results were observed, that is, pre-treatment with Ori, markedly inhibited the nuclear translocation and phosphorylation of NF-κB p65 induced by LPS and subsequently decreased the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines that were increased by LPS. Overall, these results demonstrated that Ori exerts a therapeutic effect on ALI by inhibiting the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines, such as IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α, through the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB axis.

Polydatin reduces Staphylococcus aureus lipoteichoic acid-induced injury by attenuating reactive oxygen species generation and TLR2-NFκB signalling

Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) causes severe inflammation in various infectious diseases, leading to high mortality. The clinical application of antibiotics has gained a significant curative effect. However, it has led to the emergence of various resistant bacteria. Therefore, in this study, we investigated the protective effect of polydatin (PD), a traditional Chinese medicine extract, on S. aureus lipoteichoic acid (LTA)-induced injury in vitro and in vivo. First, a significant improvement in the pathological conditions of PD in vivo was observed, suggesting that PD had a certain protective effect on LTA-induced injury in a mouse model. To further explore the underlying mechanisms of this protective effect of PD, LTA-induced murine macrophages were used in this study. The results have shown that PD could reduce the NF-κB p65, and IκBα phosphorylation levels increased by LTA, resulting in a decrease in the transcription of pro-inflammatory factors, such as TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6. However, LTA can not only activate NF-κB through the recognition of TLR2 but also increase the level of intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), thereby activating NF-κB signalling. We also detected high levels of ROS that activate caspases 9 and 3 to induce apoptosis. In addition, using a specific NF-κB inhibitor that could attenuate apoptosis, namely NF-κB p65, acted as a pro-apoptotic transcription factor in LTA-induced murine macrophages. However, PD could inhibit the generation of ROS and NF-κB p65 activation, suggesting that PD suppressed LTA-induced injury by attenuating ROS generation and TLR2-NFκB signalling.