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Häcker G. Chlamydia in pigs: intriguing bacteria associated with sub-clinical carriage and clinical disease, and with zoonotic potential. Front Cell Dev Biol 2024; 12:1301892. [PMID: 39206090 PMCID: PMC11349706 DOI: 10.3389/fcell.2024.1301892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Accepted: 06/17/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Chlamydiae are bacteria that are intriguing and important at the same time. The genus Chlamydia encompasses many species of obligate intracellular organisms: they can multiply only inside the cells of their host organism. Many, perhaps most animals have their own specifically adapted chlamydial species. In humans, the clinically most relevant species is Chlamydia trachomatis, which has particular importance as an agent of sexually transmitted disease. Pigs are the natural host of Chlamydia suis but may also carry Chlamydia abortus and Chlamydia pecorum. C. abortus and possibly C. suis have anthropozoonotic potential, which makes them interesting to human medicine, but all three species bring a substantial burden of disease to pigs. The recent availability of genomic sequence comparisons suggests adaptation of chlamydial species to their respective hosts. In cell biological terms, many aspects of all the species seem similar but non-identical: the bacteria mostly replicate within epithelial cells; they are taken up by the host cell in an endosome that they customize to generate a cytosolic vacuole; they have to evade cellular defences and have to organize nutrient transport to the vacuole; finally, they have to organize their release to be able to infect the next cell or the next host. What appears to be very difficult and challenging to achieve, is in fact a greatly successful style of parasitism. I will here attempt to cover some of the aspects of the infection biology of Chlamydia, from cell biology to immune defence, epidemiology and possibilities of prevention. I will discuss the pig as a host species and the species known to infect pigs but will in particular draw on the more detailed knowledge that we have on species that infect especially humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georg Häcker
- Institute of Medical Microbiology and Hygiene, Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- BIOSS Centre for Biological Signalling Studies, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
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2
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Olivas J, Nogueira C, Helble J, Starnbach MN. Cytotoxic CD4+ T Cells Are Induced during Infection with Chlamydia trachomatis. JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY (BALTIMORE, MD. : 1950) 2024; 213:328-338. [PMID: 38905023 PMCID: PMC11279525 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.2300131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2023] [Accepted: 05/29/2024] [Indexed: 06/23/2024]
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common cause of bacterial sexually transmitted infection in both men and women. Immunity to C. trachomatis involves many cell types, but CD4+ T cells play a key role in protecting the host during natural infection. Specifically, IFN-γ production by CD4+ T cells is the main effector responsible for bacterial clearance, yet the exact mechanism by which IFN-γ confers protection is poorly defined. In our efforts to define the specific mechanisms for bacterial clearance, we now show that IFN-γ upregulates expression of MHC class II (MHCII) on nonhematopoietic cells during C. trachomatis infection in vivo. We also find that MHCII expression on epithelial cells of the upper genital tract contributes to the efficient clearance of bacteria mediated by pathogen-specific CD4+ Th1 cells. As we further cataloged the protective mechanisms of C. trachomatis-specific CD4+ T cells, we found that the T cells also express granzyme B (GzmB) when coincubated with infected cells. In addition, during C. trachomatis infection of mice, primed activated-naive CD4+ Th1 cells displayed elevated granzyme transcripts (GzmA, GzmB, GzmM, GzmK, GzmC) compared with memory CD4+ T cells in vivo. Finally, using intracellular cytokine staining and a GzmB-/- mouse strain, we show that C. trachomatis-specific CD4+ Th1 cells express GzmB upon Ag stimulation, and that this correlates with Chlamydia clearance in vivo. Together these results have led us to conclude that Chlamydia-specific CD4+ Th1 cells develop cytotoxic capacity through engagement with nonhematopoietic MHCII, and this correlates to C. trachomatis clearance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Olivas
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Caterina Nogueira
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jennifer Helble
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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3
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Roe SK, Zhu T, Slepenkin A, Berges A, Fairman J, de la Maza LM, Massari P. Structural Assessment of Chlamydia trachomatis Major Outer Membrane Protein (MOMP)-Derived Vaccine Antigens and Immunological Profiling in Mice with Different Genetic Backgrounds. Vaccines (Basel) 2024; 12:789. [PMID: 39066427 PMCID: PMC11281497 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines12070789] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2024] [Revised: 07/13/2024] [Accepted: 07/16/2024] [Indexed: 07/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) is the most common cause of bacterial sexually transmitted infections (STIs) worldwide. Ct infections are often asymptomatic in women, leading to severe reproductive tract sequelae. Development of a vaccine against Chlamydia is crucial. The Chlamydia major outer membrane protein (MOMP) is a prime vaccine antigen candidate, and it can elicit both neutralizing antibodies and protective CD4+ T cell responses. We have previously designed chimeric antigens composed of immunogenic variable regions (VDs) and conserved regions (CDs) of MOMP from Chlamydia muridarum (Cm) expressed into a carrier protein (PorB), and we have shown that these were protective in a mouse model of Cm respiratory infection. Here, we generated corresponding constructs based on MOMP from Ct serovar F. Preliminary structure analysis of the three antigens, PorB/VD1-3, PorB/VD1-4 and PorB/VD1-2-4, showed that they retained structure features consistent with those of PorB. The antigens induced robust humoral and cellular responses in mice with different genetic backgrounds. The antibodies were cross-reactive against Ct, but only anti-PorB/VD1-4 and anti-PorB/VD1-2-4 IgG antibodies were neutralizing, likely due to the antigen specificity. The cellular responses included proliferation in vitro and production of IFN-γ by splenocytes following Ct re-stimulation. Our results support further investigation of the PorB/VD antigens as potential protective candidates for a Chlamydia subunit vaccine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shea K. Roe
- Department of Immunology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02111, USA; (S.K.R.)
| | - Tianmou Zhu
- Department of Immunology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02111, USA; (S.K.R.)
| | - Anatoli Slepenkin
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA (L.M.d.l.M.)
| | - Aym Berges
- Vaxcyte Inc., 825 Industrial Road, Suite 300, San Carlos, CA 94070, USA (J.F.)
| | - Jeff Fairman
- Vaxcyte Inc., 825 Industrial Road, Suite 300, San Carlos, CA 94070, USA (J.F.)
| | - Luis M. de la Maza
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA (L.M.d.l.M.)
| | - Paola Massari
- Department of Immunology, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02111, USA; (S.K.R.)
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4
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Meewes C, Gupta K, Geisler WM. Role of microRNAs in immune regulation and pathogenesis of Chlamydia trachomatis and Chlamydia muridarum infections: a rapid review. Microbes Infect 2024:105397. [PMID: 39025257 DOI: 10.1016/j.micinf.2024.105397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2024] [Revised: 07/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/15/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
MicroRNAs in Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) and Chlamydia muridarum (CM) infections are an emerging topic of research that provide knowledge that could advance vaccine development and strategies for managing infection. This rapid review summarizes human and murine studies on miRNA expression in CT and CM infections in vivo and ex vivo.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chloe Meewes
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States
| | - Kanupriya Gupta
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States
| | - William M Geisler
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, United States.
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5
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Pretorius A, Nefefe T, Thema N, Liebenberg J, Steyn H, van Kleef M. Screening for immune biomarkers associated with infection or protection against Ehrlichia ruminantium by RNA-sequencing analysis. Microb Pathog 2024; 189:106588. [PMID: 38369169 DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2024.106588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Revised: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
Heartwater is one of the most economically important tick-borne fatal diseases of livestock. The disease is caused by the bacteria Ehrlichia ruminantium transmitted by Amblyomma ticks. Although there is evidence that interferon-gamma controls E. ruminantium growth and that cellular immune responses are protective, an effective recombinant vaccine for this disease is lacking. Analyses of markers associated with infection as well as protection will lead to a better understanding of the E. ruminantium immune response and corresponding pathways induced in sheep peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) will assist in development of such a vaccine. In this study, Biomarkers of infection (BMI) were identified as uniquely expressed genes during primary infection and biomarkers of protection (BMP) associated with immune to heartwater were identified post challenge. Sheep were experimentally infected and challenged with E. ruminantium infected ticks. The immune phenotypic and transcriptome profile of their PBMC were compared to their own naïve PBMC collected before infection. The study revealed 305 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) as BMI, of these 17 were upregulated at all three time-points investigated. These DEGs, form part of the bacterial invasion of epithelial cells Kyoto Encyclopaedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway, and others detected from day 1 post infection and are considered predictive markers for early heartwater infection in ruminants. Similarly, a total of 332 DEGs were identified as BMP, of these 100 were upregulated and 75 were downregulated at all three time-points investigated. However, at D1PC most DEGs were downregulated (n = 1312) that correlated with a reduction in the % CD4 and CD8 T cells detected with flow cytometry. KEGG pathway analyses showed complete down regulation of T cell specific pathways possibly due to homing of immune cells to the site of infection after acquired immunity developed. At D4PC, expression levels of most of these downregulated genes increased and by D6PC they were upregulated. This indicates that the sampling time-point for biomarker analyses is important when results for acquired immune responses are inferred. This data identified DEGs that could be considered as biomarkers of protective immunity that can be used for identification of vaccine antigens and provides a strong foundation to further development of heartwater recombinant vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Pretorius
- Agricultural Research Council -Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Private Bag X05, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa; Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X04, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa.
| | - T Nefefe
- Agricultural Research Council -Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Private Bag X05, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa; Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X04, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - N Thema
- Agricultural Research Council -Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Private Bag X05, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - J Liebenberg
- Agricultural Research Council -Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Private Bag X05, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - H Steyn
- Agricultural Research Council -Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Private Bag X05, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
| | - M van Kleef
- Agricultural Research Council -Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Private Bag X05, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa; Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Private Bag X04, Onderstepoort, 0110, South Africa
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6
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Murthy AK, Wright-McAfee E, Warda K, Moy LN, Bui N, Musunuri T, Manam S, Chako CZ, Ramsey KH, Li W. Protective anti-chlamydial vaccine regimen-induced CD4+ T cell response mediates early inhibition of pathogenic CD8+ T cell response following genital challenge. Pathog Dis 2024; 82:ftae008. [PMID: 38684476 PMCID: PMC11149721 DOI: 10.1093/femspd/ftae008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2024] [Revised: 04/19/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
We have demonstrated previously that TNF-α-producing CD8+ T cells mediate chlamydial pathogenesis, likely in an antigen (Ag)-specific fashion. Here we hypothesize that inhibition of Ag-specific CD8+ T cell response after immunization and/or challenge would correlate with protection against oviduct pathology induced by a protective vaccine regimen. Intranasal (i.n.) live chlamydial elementary body (EB), intramuscular (i.m.) live EB, or i.n. irrelevant antigen, bovine serum albumin (BSA), immunized animals induced near-total protection, 50% protection, or no protection, respectively against oviduct pathology following i.vag. C. muridarum challenge. In these models, we evaluated Ag-specific CD8+ T cell cytokine response at various time-periods after immunization or challenge. The results show protective efficacy of vaccine regimens correlated with reduction of Ag-specific CD8+ T cell TNF-α responses following i.vag. chlamydial challenge, not after immunization. Depletion of CD4+ T cells abrogated, whereas adoptive transfer of Ag-specific CD4+ T cells induced the significant reduction of Ag-specific CD8+ T cell TNF-α response after chlamydial challenge. In conclusion, protective anti-chlamydial vaccine regimens induce Ag-specific CD4+ T cell response that mediate early inhibition of pathogenic CD8+ T cell response following challenge and may serve as a predictive biomarker of protection against Chlamydia -induced chronic pathologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ashlesh K Murthy
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Erika Wright-McAfee
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Katerina Warda
- Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Lindsay N Moy
- Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Nhi Bui
- Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Tarakarama Musunuri
- Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Srikanth Manam
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Clemence Z Chako
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Kyle H Ramsey
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
- College of Graduate Studies, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
| | - Weidang Li
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Midwestern University, Glendale, AZ 85308, USA
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7
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Walker FC, Derré I. Contributions of diverse models of the female reproductive tract to the study of Chlamydia trachomatis-host interactions. Curr Opin Microbiol 2024; 77:102416. [PMID: 38103413 PMCID: PMC10922760 DOI: 10.1016/j.mib.2023.102416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2023] [Revised: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis is a common cause of sexually transmitted infections in humans with devastating sequelae. Understanding of disease on all scales, from molecular details to the immunology underlying pathology, is essential for identifying new ways of preventing and treating chlamydia. Infection models of various complexity are essential to understand all aspects of chlamydia pathogenesis. Cell culture systems allow for research into molecular details of infection, including characterization of the unique biphasic Chlamydia developmental cycle and the role of type-III-secreted effectors in modifying the host environment to allow for infection. Multicell type and organoid culture provide means to investigate how cells other than the infected cells contribute to the control of infection. Emerging comprehensive three-dimensional biomimetic systems may fill an important gap in current models to provide information on complex phenotypes that cannot be modeled in simpler in vitro models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Forrest C Walker
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, United States of America
| | - Isabelle Derré
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, United States of America.
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8
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Mayall JR, Horvat JC, Mangan NE, Chevalier A, McCarthy H, Hampsey D, Donovan C, Brown AC, Matthews AY, de Weerd NA, de Geus ED, Starkey MR, Kim RY, Daly K, Goggins BJ, Keely S, Maltby S, Baldwin R, Foster PS, Boyle MJ, Tanwar PS, Huntington ND, Hertzog PJ, Hansbro PM. Interferon-epsilon is a novel regulator of NK cell responses in the uterus. EMBO Mol Med 2024; 16:267-293. [PMID: 38263527 PMCID: PMC10897320 DOI: 10.1038/s44321-023-00018-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2021] [Revised: 12/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024] Open
Abstract
The uterus is a unique mucosal site where immune responses are balanced to be permissive of a fetus, yet protective against infections. Regulation of natural killer (NK) cell responses in the uterus during infection is critical, yet no studies have identified uterine-specific factors that control NK cell responses in this immune-privileged site. We show that the constitutive expression of IFNε in the uterus plays a crucial role in promoting the accumulation, activation, and IFNγ production of NK cells in uterine tissue during Chlamydia infection. Uterine epithelial IFNε primes NK cell responses indirectly by increasing IL-15 production by local immune cells and directly by promoting the accumulation of a pre-pro-like NK cell progenitor population and activation of NK cells in the uterus. These findings demonstrate the unique features of this uterine-specific type I IFN and the mechanisms that underpin its major role in orchestrating innate immune cell protection against uterine infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jemma R Mayall
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Jay C Horvat
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Niamh E Mangan
- Centre for Innate Immunity and Infectious Diseases, Hudson Institute of Medical Research and Departments of Molecular and Translational Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia
| | - Anne Chevalier
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Huw McCarthy
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Daniel Hampsey
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Chantal Donovan
- Centre for Inflammation, Centenary Institute and University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
| | - Alexandra C Brown
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Antony Y Matthews
- Centre for Innate Immunity and Infectious Diseases, Hudson Institute of Medical Research and Departments of Molecular and Translational Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia
| | - Nicole A de Weerd
- Centre for Innate Immunity and Infectious Diseases, Hudson Institute of Medical Research and Departments of Molecular and Translational Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia
| | - Eveline D de Geus
- Centre for Innate Immunity and Infectious Diseases, Hudson Institute of Medical Research and Departments of Molecular and Translational Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia
| | - Malcolm R Starkey
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
- Immunology and Pathology, Central Clinical School, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia
| | - Richard Y Kim
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
- Centre for Inflammation, Centenary Institute and University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
| | - Katie Daly
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Bridie J Goggins
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Simon Keely
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Steven Maltby
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Rennay Baldwin
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Paul S Foster
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Michael J Boyle
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
- Immunology and Infectious Diseases Unit, John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle, NSW, 2305, Australia
| | - Pradeep S Tanwar
- Gynecology Oncology Research Group, School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia
| | - Nicholas D Huntington
- Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia
| | - Paul J Hertzog
- Centre for Innate Immunity and Infectious Diseases, Hudson Institute of Medical Research and Departments of Molecular and Translational Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, 3168, Australia
| | - Philip M Hansbro
- Immune Health Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute and the University of Newcastle, Newcastle, NSW, 2308, Australia.
- Centre for Inflammation, Centenary Institute and University of Technology Sydney, Faculty of Science, School of Life Sciences, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia.
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9
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Armitage CW, O'Meara CP, Bryan ER, Kollipara A, Trim LK, Hickey D, Carey AJ, Huston WM, Donnelly G, Yazdani A, Blumberg RS, Beagley KW. IgG exacerbates genital chlamydial pathology in females by enhancing pathogenic CD8 + T cell responses. Scand J Immunol 2024; 99:e13331. [PMID: 38441219 PMCID: PMC10909563 DOI: 10.1111/sji.13331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Revised: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 03/07/2024]
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis infections are an important sexually transmitted infection that can lead to inflammation, scarring and hydrosalpinx/infertility. However, infections are commonly clinically asymptomatic and do not receive treatment. The underlying cause of asymptomatic immunopathology remains unknown. Here, we demonstrate that IgG produced during male infection enhanced the incidence of immunopathology and infertility in females. Human endocervical cells expressing the neonatal Fc Receptor (FcRn) increased translocation of human IgG-opsonized C. trachomatis. Using total IgG purified from infected male mice, we opsonized C. muridarum and then infected female mice, mimicking sexual transmission. Following infection, IgG-opsonized Chlamydia was found to transcytose the epithelial barrier in the uterus, where it was phagocytosed by antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and trafficked to the draining lymph nodes. APCs then expanded both CD4+ and CD8+ T cell populations and caused significantly more infertility in female mice infected with non-opsonized Chlamydia. Enhanced phagocytosis of IgG-opsonized Chlamydia significantly increased pro-inflammatory signalling and T cell proliferation. As IgG is transcytosed by FcRn, we utilized FcRn-/- mice and observed that shedding kinetics of Chlamydia were only affected in FcRn-/- mice infected with IgG-opsonized Chlamydia. Depletion of CD8+ T cells in FcRn-/- mice lead to a significant reduction in the incidence of infertility. Taken together, these data demonstrate that IgG seroconversion during male infection can amplify female immunopathology, dependent on FcRn transcytosis, APC differentiation and enhanced CD8 T cell responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles W. Armitage
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Connor P. O'Meara
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
- Drop Bio Ltd, School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences (BABS)University of New South WalesSydneyNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Emily R. Bryan
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Avinash Kollipara
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Logan K. Trim
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Danica Hickey
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Alison J. Carey
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Wilhelmina M. Huston
- School of Life SciencesUniversity of Technology (UTS) SydneyUltimoNew South WalesAustralia
| | - Gavin Donnelly
- Queensland Fertility Group (QFG)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Anusch Yazdani
- Queensland Fertility Group (QFG)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Richard S. Blumberg
- Division of Gastroenterology, Department of MedicineBrigham & Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical SchoolBostonMassachusettsUSA
| | - Kenneth W. Beagley
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of Technology (QUT)BrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
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10
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Rixon JA, Fong KD, Morris C, Nguyen AT, Depew CE, McSorley SJ. Elimination of Chlamydia muridarum from the female reproductive tract is IL-12p40 dependent, but independent of Th1 and Th2 cells. PLoS Pathog 2024; 20:e1011914. [PMID: 38166152 PMCID: PMC10786385 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011914] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2023] [Revised: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 12/19/2023] [Indexed: 01/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia vaccine approaches aspire to induce Th1 cells for optimal protection, despite the fact that there is no direct evidence demonstrating Th1-mediated Chlamydia clearance from the female reproductive tract (FRT). We recently reported that T-bet-deficient mice can resolve primary Chlamydia infection normally, undermining the potentially protective role of Th1 cells in Chlamydia immunity. Here, we show that T-bet-deficient mice develop robust Th17 responses and that mice deficient in Th17 cells exhibit delayed bacterial clearance, demonstrating that Chlamydia-specific Th17 cells represent an underappreciated protective population. Additionally, Th2-deficient mice competently clear cervicovaginal infection. Furthermore, we show that sensing of IFN-γ by non-hematopoietic cells is essential for Chlamydia immunity, yet bacterial clearance in the FRT does not require IFN-γ secretion by CD4 T cells. Despite the fact that Th1 cells are not necessary for Chlamydia clearance, protective immunity to Chlamydia is still dependent on MHC class-II-restricted CD4 T cells and IL-12p40. Together, these data point to IL-12p40-dependent CD4 effector maturation as essential for Chlamydia immunity, and Th17 cells to a lesser extent, yet neither Th1 nor Th2 cell development is critical. Future Chlamydia vaccination efforts will be more effective if they focus on induction of this protective CD4 T cell population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordan A. Rixon
- Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
| | - Kevin D. Fong
- Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
| | - Claire Morris
- Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
| | - Alana T. Nguyen
- Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
| | - Claire E. Depew
- Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
| | - Stephen J. McSorley
- Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, California, United States of America
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11
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Zimmermann J, van Haren SD, Diray-Arce J, Adriawan IR, Wørzner K, Krog RT, Guleed S, Hu T, Mortensen R, Dietrich J, Solbak SMØ, Levy O, Christensen D, Pedersen GK. Co-adjuvanting DDA/TDB liposomes with a TLR7 agonist allows for IgG2a/c class-switching in the absence of Th1 cells. NPJ Vaccines 2023; 8:189. [PMID: 38135685 PMCID: PMC10746746 DOI: 10.1038/s41541-023-00781-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Class-switching to IgG2a/c in mice is a hallmark response to intracellular pathogens. T cells can promote class-switching and the predominant pathway for induction of IgG2a/c antibody responses has been suggested to be via stimulation from Th1 cells. We previously formulated CAF®01 (cationic liposomes containing dimethyldioctadecylammonium bromide (DDA) and Trehalose-6,6-dibehenate (TDB)) with the lipidated TLR7/8 agonist 3M-052 (DDA/TDB/3M-052), which promoted robust Th1 immunity in newborn mice. When testing this adjuvant in adult mice using the recombinant Chlamydia trachomatis (C.t.) vaccine antigen CTH522, it similarly enhanced IgG2a/c responses compared to DDA/TDB, but surprisingly reduced the magnitude of the IFN-γ+Th1 response in a TLR7 agonist dose-dependent manner. Single-cell RNA-sequencing revealed that DDA/TDB/3M-052 liposomes initiated early transcription of class-switch regulating genes directly in pre-germinal center B cells. Mixed bone marrow chimeras further demonstrated that this adjuvant did not require Th1 cells for IgG2a/c switching, but rather facilitated TLR7-dependent T-bet programming directly in B cells. This study underlines that adjuvant-directed IgG2a/c class-switching in vivo can occur in the absence of T-cell help, via direct activation of TLR7 on B cells and positions DDA/TDB/3M-052 as a powerful adjuvant capable of eliciting type I-like immunity in B cells without strong induction of Th1 responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Zimmermann
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Simon D van Haren
- Precision Vaccines Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joann Diray-Arce
- Precision Vaccines Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Katharina Wørzner
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ricki T Krog
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Safia Guleed
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Tu Hu
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Rasmus Mortensen
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jes Dietrich
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Sara M Ø Solbak
- Department of Drug Design and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ofer Levy
- Precision Vaccines Program, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Dennis Christensen
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Gabriel K Pedersen
- Center for Vaccine Research, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark.
- Department of Immunology and Microbiology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
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12
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Caven L, Carabeo R. Chlamydial YAP activation in host endocervical epithelial cells mediates pro-fibrotic paracrine stimulation of fibroblasts. mSystems 2023; 8:e0090423. [PMID: 37874141 PMCID: PMC10734534 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.00904-23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Accepted: 09/15/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023] Open
Abstract
IMPORTANCE Chronic or repeated infection of the female upper genital tract by C. trachomatis can lead to severe fibrotic sequelae, including tubal factor infertility and ectopic pregnancy. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying this effect are unclear. In this report, we define a transcriptional program specific to C. trachomatis infection of the upper genital tract, identifying tissue-specific induction of host YAP-a pro-fibrotic transcriptional cofactor-as a potential driver of infection-mediated fibrotic gene expression. Furthermore, we show that infected endocervical epithelial cells stimulate collagen production by fibroblasts and implicate chlamydial induction of YAP in this effect. Our results define a mechanism by which infection mediates tissue-level fibrotic pathology via paracrine signaling and identify YAP as a potential therapeutic target for the prevention of Chlamydia-associated scarring of the female genital tract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liam Caven
- Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
- School of Molecular Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
| | - Rey Carabeo
- Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
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13
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Richardson S, Bell CR, Medhavi F, Tanner T, Lundy S, Omosun Y, Igietseme JU, Eko FO. A novel cold-chain free VCG-based subunit vaccine protects against Chlamydia abortus-induced neonatal mortality in a pregnant mouse model. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1243743. [PMID: 37915580 PMCID: PMC10616880 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1243743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2023] [Accepted: 09/28/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia abortus (Cab) causes spontaneous abortion and neonatal mortality in infected ruminants and pregnant women. Most Cab infections are asymptomatic, although they can be treated with antibiotics, signifying that control of these infections may require alternative strategies, including the use of effective vaccines. However, the limitations imposed by live attenuated and inactivated vaccines further suggest that employment of subunit vaccines may need to be considered. The efficacy of a newly generated Vibrio cholerae ghost (rVCG)-based subunit vaccine harboring the N-terminal portion of the Cab Pmp18D protein (rVCG-Pmp18.3) in preventing Cab-induced abortion or neonatal mortality was evaluated in pregnant mice. Mice were intranasally (IN) immunized and boosted twice, 2 weeks apart with the vaccine, and immunized and unimmunized mice were caged with males 4 weeks postimmunization. The mice were then infected either IN or transcervically (TC) 10 days after pregnancy, and the fertility rate was determined 7 days postpartum. Eight days after delivery, the mice were sacrificed, and Cab infectivity in the lungs and spleens was evaluated by culturing tissue homogenates in tissue culture. Our results demonstrated that the vaccine induced immune effectors that mediated complete clearance of infection in the lungs and significantly reduced Cab infectivity in the spleen following IN immunization. Vaccine immunization also afforded protection against Cab-induced upper genital tract pathology (uterine dilation). Furthermore, while there was no incidence of abortion in both immunized and unimmunized mice, immunized mice were completely protected against neonatal mortality compared to unimmunized infected controls, which lost a significant percentage of their litter 7 days postpartum. Our results establish the capability of the rVCG-Pmp18.3 vaccine to prevent infection in the lungs (mucosal) and spleen (systemic) and protect mice from Cab-induced tubal pathologies and neonatal mortality, a hallmark of Cab infection in ruminants. To advance the commercial potential of this vaccine, future studies will optimize the antigen dose and the number of vaccine doses required for protection of ruminants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shakyra Richardson
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Courtnee R. Bell
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Fnu Medhavi
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Tayhlor Tanner
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Stephanie Lundy
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Yusuf Omosun
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Joseph U. Igietseme
- National Center for Emerging Zoonotic and Infectious Diseases, Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Francis O. Eko
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
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14
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Liu C, Mokashi NV, Darville T, Sun X, O’Connell CM, Hufnagel K, Waterboer T, Zheng X. A Machine Learning-Based Analytic Pipeline Applied to Clinical and Serum IgG Immunoproteome Data To Predict Chlamydia trachomatis Genital Tract Ascension and Incident Infection in Women. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0468922. [PMID: 37318345 PMCID: PMC10434056 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.04689-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2023] [Indexed: 06/16/2023] Open
Abstract
We developed a reusable and open-source machine learning (ML) pipeline that can provide an analytical framework for rigorous biomarker discovery. We implemented the ML pipeline to determine the predictive potential of clinical and immunoproteome antibody data for outcomes associated with Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) infection collected from 222 cis-gender females with high Ct exposure. We compared the predictive performance of 4 ML algorithms (naive Bayes, random forest, extreme gradient boosting with linear booster [xgbLinear], and k-nearest neighbors [KNN]), screened from 215 ML methods, in combination with two different feature selection strategies, Boruta and recursive feature elimination. Recursive feature elimination performed better than Boruta in this study. In prediction of Ct ascending infection, naive Bayes yielded a slightly higher median value of are under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUROC) 0.57 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.54 to 0.59) than other methods and provided biological interpretability. For prediction of incident infection among women uninfected at enrollment, KNN performed slightly better than other algorithms, with a median AUROC of 0.61 (95% CI, 0.49 to 0.70). In contrast, xgbLinear and random forest had higher predictive performances, with median AUROC of 0.63 (95% CI, 0.58 to 0.67) and 0.62 (95% CI, 0.58 to 0.64), respectively, for women infected at enrollment. Our findings suggest that clinical factors and serum anti-Ct protein IgGs are inadequate biomarkers for ascension or incident Ct infection. Nevertheless, our analysis highlights the utility of a pipeline that searches for biomarkers and evaluates prediction performance and interpretability. IMPORTANCE Biomarker discovery to aid early diagnosis and treatment using machine learning (ML) approaches is a rapidly developing area in host-microbe studies. However, lack of reproducibility and interpretability of ML-driven biomarker analysis hinders selection of robust biomarkers that can be applied in clinical practice. We thus developed a rigorous ML analytical framework and provide recommendations for enhancing reproducibility of biomarkers. We emphasize the importance of robustness in selection of ML methods, evaluation of performance, and interpretability of biomarkers. Our ML pipeline is reusable and open-source and can be used not only to identify host-pathogen interaction biomarkers but also in microbiome studies and ecological and environmental microbiology research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chuwen Liu
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Neha Vivek Mokashi
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Toni Darville
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Xuejun Sun
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Catherine M. O’Connell
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Katrin Hufnagel
- Infections and Cancer Epidemiology, German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Tim Waterboer
- Infections and Cancer Epidemiology, German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Xiaojing Zheng
- Department of Biostatistics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
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15
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Turman BJ, Darville T, O'Connell CM. Plasmid-mediated virulence in Chlamydia. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2023; 13:1251135. [PMID: 37662000 PMCID: PMC10469868 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2023.1251135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis infection of ocular conjunctiva can lead to blindness, while infection of the female genital tract can lead to chronic pelvic pain, ectopic pregnancy, and/or infertility. Conjunctival and fallopian tube inflammation and the resulting disease sequelae are attributed to immune responses induced by chlamydial infection at these mucosal sites. The conserved chlamydial plasmid has been implicated in enhancing infection, via improved host cell entry and exit, and accelerating innate inflammatory responses that lead to tissue damage. The chlamydial plasmid encodes eight open reading frames, three of which have been associated with virulence: a secreted protein, Pgp3, and putative transcriptional regulators, Pgp4 and Pgp5. Although Pgp3 is an important plasmid-encoded virulence factor, recent studies suggest that chlamydial plasmid-mediated virulence extends beyond the expression of Pgp3. In this review, we discuss studies of genital, ocular, and gastrointestinal infection with C. trachomatis or C. muridarum that shed light on the role of the plasmid in disease development, and the potential for tissue and species-specific differences in plasmid-mediated pathogenesis. We also review evidence that plasmid-associated inflammation can be independent of bacterial burden. The functions of each of the plasmid-encoded proteins and potential molecular mechanisms for their role(s) in chlamydial virulence are discussed. Although the understanding of plasmid-associated virulence has expanded within the last decade, many questions related to how and to what extent the plasmid influences chlamydial infectivity and inflammation remain unknown, particularly with respect to human infections. Elucidating the answers to these questions could improve our understanding of how chlamydia augment infection and inflammation to cause disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Breanna J. Turman
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Toni Darville
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
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16
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Choudhary P, Magloire D, Hamonic G, Wilson HL. Immune responses in the uterine mucosa: clues for vaccine development in pigs. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1171212. [PMID: 37483639 PMCID: PMC10361056 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1171212] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2023] [Accepted: 06/16/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The immune system in the upper reproductive tract (URT) protects against sexually transmitted pathogens, while at the same time providing immune tolerance responses against allogenic sperm and the developing fetus. The uterine environment is also responsive to hormonal variations during the estrus cycle, although the most likely timing of exposure to pathogens is during estrus and breeding when the cervix is semi-permissive. The goal for intrauterine immunization would be to induce local or systemic immunity and/or to promote colostral/lactogenic immunity that will passively protect suckling offspring. The developing fetus is not the vaccine target. This minireview article focuses on the immune response induced in the pig uterus (uterine body and uterine horns) with some comparative references to other livestock species, mice, and humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pooja Choudhary
- Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Donaldson Magloire
- Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Glenn Hamonic
- Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
| | - Heather L. Wilson
- Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization (VIDO), University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
- Department of Veterinary Microbiology Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, Canada
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17
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Caven LT, Carabeo RA. The role of infected epithelial cells in Chlamydia-associated fibrosis. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2023; 13:1208302. [PMID: 37265500 PMCID: PMC10230099 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2023.1208302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Ocular, genital, and anogenital infection by the obligate intracellular pathogen Chlamydia trachomatis have been consistently associated with scar-forming sequelae. In cases of chronic or repeated infection of the female genital tract, infection-associated fibrosis of the fallopian tubes can result in ectopic pregnancy or infertility. In light of this urgent concern to public health, the underlying mechanism of C. trachomatis-associated scarring is a topic of ongoing study. Fibrosis is understood to be an outcome of persistent injury and/or dysregulated wound healing, in which an aberrantly activated myofibroblast population mediates hypertrophic remodeling of the basement membrane via deposition of collagens and other components of the extracellular matrix, as well as induction of epithelial cell proliferation via growth factor signaling. Initial study of infection-associated immune cell recruitment and pro-inflammatory signaling have suggested the cellular paradigm of chlamydial pathogenesis, wherein inflammation-associated tissue damage and fibrosis are the indirect result of an immune response to the pathogen initiated by host epithelial cells. However, recent work has revealed more direct routes by which C. trachomatis may induce scarring, such as infection-associated induction of growth factor signaling and pro-fibrotic remodeling of the extracellular matrix. Additionally, C. trachomatis infection has been shown to induce an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in host epithelial cells, prompting transdifferentiation into a myofibroblast-like phenotype. In this review, we summarize the field's current understanding of Chlamydia-associated fibrosis, reviewing key new findings and identifying opportunities for further research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liam T. Caven
- Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United States
- School of Molecular Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Washington State University, Pullman, WA, United States
| | - Rey A. Carabeo
- Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, United States
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18
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Armitage CW, Carey AJ, Bryan ER, Kollipara A, Trim LK, Beagley KW. Pathogenic NKT cells attenuate urogenital chlamydial clearance and enhance infertility. Scand J Immunol 2023; 97:e13263. [PMID: 36872855 PMCID: PMC10909442 DOI: 10.1111/sji.13263] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2022] [Revised: 02/12/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/07/2023]
Abstract
Urogenital chlamydial infections continue to increase with over 127 million people affected annually, causing significant economic and public health pressures. While the role of traditional MHCI and II peptide presentation is well defined in chlamydial infections, the role of lipid antigens in immunity remains unclear. Natural killer (NK) T cells are important effector cells that recognize and respond to lipid antigens during infections. Chlamydial infection of antigen-presenting cells facilitates presentation of lipid on the MHCI-like protein, CD1d, which stimulates NKT cells to respond. During urogenital chlamydial infection, wild-type (WT) female mice had significantly greater chlamydial burden than CD1d-/- (NKT-deficient) mice, and had significantly greater incidence and severity of immunopathology in both primary and secondary infections. WT mice had similar vaginal lymphocytic infiltrate, but 59% more oviduct occlusion compared to CD1d-/- mice. Transcriptional array analysis of oviducts day 6 post-infection revealed WT mice had elevated levels of Ifnγ (6-fold), Tnfα (38-fold), Il6 (2.5-fold), Il1β (3-fold) and Il17a (6-fold) mRNA compared to CD1d-/- mice. In infected females, oviduct tissues had an elevated infiltration of CD4+ -invariant NKT (iNKT) cells, however, iNKT-deficient Jα18-/- mice had no significant differences in hydrosalpinx severity or incidence compared to WT controls. Lipid mass spectrometry of surface-cleaved CD1d in infected macrophages revealed an enhancement of presented lipids and cellular sequestration of sphingomyelin. Taken together, these data suggest an immunopathogenic role for non-invariant NKT cells in urogenital chlamydial infections, facilitated by lipid presentation via CD1d via infected antigen-presenting cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charles W. Armitage
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Alison J. Carey
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Emily R. Bryan
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Avinash Kollipara
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Logan K. Trim
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
| | - Kenneth W. Beagley
- Centre for Immunology and Infection Control and School of Biomedical SciencesQueensland University of TechnologyBrisbaneQueenslandAustralia
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19
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Woodworth JS, Contreras V, Christensen D, Naninck T, Kahlaoui N, Gallouët AS, Langlois S, Burban E, Joly C, Gros W, Dereuddre-Bosquet N, Morin J, Olsen ML, Rosenkrands I, Stein AK, Wood GK, Follmann F, Lindenstrøm T, LeGrand R, Pedersen GK, Mortensen R. A novel adjuvant formulation induces robust Th1/Th17 memory and mucosal recall responses in Non-Human Primates. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.02.23.529651. [PMID: 36865310 PMCID: PMC9980079 DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.23.529651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/25/2023]
Abstract
After clean drinking water, vaccination is the most impactful global health intervention. However, development of new vaccines against difficult-to-target diseases is hampered by the lack of diverse adjuvants for human use. Of particular interest, none of the currently available adjuvants induce Th17 cells. Here, we develop and test an improved liposomal adjuvant, termed CAF®10b, that incorporates a TLR-9 agonist. In a head-to-head study in non-human primates (NHPs), immunization with antigen adjuvanted with CAF®10b induced significantly increased antibody and cellular immune responses compared to previous CAF® adjuvants, already in clinical trials. This was not seen in the mouse model, demonstrating that adjuvant effects can be highly species specific. Importantly, intramuscular immunization of NHPs with CAF®10b induced robust Th17 responses that were observed in circulation half a year after vaccination. Furthermore, subsequent instillation of unadjuvanted antigen into the skin and lungs of these memory animals led to significant recall responses including transient local lung inflammation observed by Positron Emission Tomography-Computed Tomography (PET-CT), elevated antibody titers, and expanded systemic and local Th1 and Th17 responses, including >20% antigen-specific T cells in the bronchoalveolar lavage. Overall, CAF®10b demonstrated an adjuvant able to drive true memory antibody, Th1 and Th17 vaccine-responses across rodent and primate species, supporting its translational potential.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua S Woodworth
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Vanessa Contreras
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Dennis Christensen
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Thibaut Naninck
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Nidhal Kahlaoui
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Anne-Sophie Gallouët
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Sébastien Langlois
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Emma Burban
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Candie Joly
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Wesley Gros
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Nathalie Dereuddre-Bosquet
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Julie Morin
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Ming Liu Olsen
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ida Rosenkrands
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ann-Kathrin Stein
- Department of Vaccine Development, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Grith Krøyer Wood
- Department of Vaccine Development, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Frank Follmann
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Thomas Lindenstrøm
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Roger LeGrand
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, CEA, Immunologie des maladies virales, auto-immunes, hématologiques et bactériennes (IMVA-HB/IDMIT/UMR1184); 92265, Fontenay-aux-Roses & Kremlin Bicêtre, France
| | - Gabriel Kristian Pedersen
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Rasmus Mortensen
- Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut; Artillerivej 5, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
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Virulence Protein Pgp3 Is Insufficient To Mediate Plasmid-Dependent Infectivity of Chlamydia trachomatis. Infect Immun 2023; 91:e0039222. [PMID: 36722979 PMCID: PMC9933628 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00392-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common cause of infectious blindness and sexually transmitted bacterial infection globally. C. trachomatis contains a conserved chlamydial plasmid with eight coding sequences. Plasmid-cured Chlamydia strains are attenuated and display reduced infectivity in cell culture and in vivo genital infection of female mice. Mutants that do not express the plasmid-encoded proteins Pgp3, a secreted protein with unknown function, or Pgp4, a putative regulator of pgp3 and other chromosomal loci, display an infectivity defect similar to plasmid-deficient strains. Our objective was to determine the combined and individual contributions of Pgp3 and Pgp4 to this phenotype. Deletion of pgp3 and pgp4 resulted in an infectivity defect detected by competition assay in cell culture and in mice. The pgp3 locus was placed under the control of an anhydrotetracycline-inducible promoter to examine the individual contributions of Pgp3 and Pgp4 to infectivity. Expression of pgp3 was induced 100- to 1,000-fold after anhydrotetracycline administration, regardless of the presence or absence of pgp4. However, secreted Pgp3 was not detected when pgp4 was deleted, confirming a role for Pgp4 in Pgp3 secretion. We discovered that expression of pgp3 or pgp4 alone was insufficient to restore normal infectivity, which required expression of both Pgp3 and Pgp4. These results suggest Pgp3 and Pgp4 are both required for infectivity during C. trachomatis infection. Future studies are required to determine the mechanism by which Pgp3 and Pgp4 influence chlamydial infectivity as well as the potential roles of Pgp4-regulated loci.
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Fields KA, Bodero MD, Scanlon KR, Jewett TJ, Wolf K. A Minimal Replicon Enables Efficacious, Species-Specific Gene Deletion in Chlamydia and Extension of Gene Knockout Studies to the Animal Model of Infection Using Chlamydia muridarum. Infect Immun 2022; 90:e0045322. [PMID: 36350146 PMCID: PMC9753632 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00453-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
The genus Chlamydia consists of diverse, obligate intracellular bacteria that infect various animals, including humans. Although chlamydial species share many aspects of the typical intracellular lifestyle, such as the biphasic developmental cycle and the preference for invasion of epithelial cells, each chlamydial strain also employs sophisticated species-specific strategies that contribute to an extraordinary diversity in organ and/or tissue tropism and disease manifestation. In order to discover and understand the mechanisms underlying how these pathogens infect particular hosts and cause specific diseases, it is imperative to develop a mutagenesis approach that would be applicable to every chlamydial species. We present functional evidence that the region between Chlamydia trachomatis and Chlamydia muridarum pgp6 and pgp7, containing four 22-bp tandem repeats that are present in all chlamydial endogenous plasmids, represents the plasmid origin of replication. Furthermore, by introducing species-specific ori regions into an engineered 5.45-kb pUC19-based plasmid, we generated vectors that can be successfully transformed into and propagated under selective pressure by C. trachomatis serovars L2 and D, as well as C. muridarum. Conversely, these vectors were rapidly lost upon removal of the selective antibiotic. This conditionally replicating system was used to generate a tarP deletion mutant by fluorescence-reported allelic exchange mutagenesis in both C. trachomatis serovar D and C. muridarum. The strains were analyzed using in vitro invasion and fitness assays. The virulence of the C. muridarum strains was then assessed in a murine infection model. Our approach represents a novel and efficient strategy for targeted genetic manipulation in Chlamydia beyond C. trachomatis L2. This advance will support comparative studies of species-specific infection biology and enable studies in a well-established murine model of chlamydial pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kenneth A. Fields
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
| | - Maria D. Bodero
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
| | - Kaylyn R. Scanlon
- Division of Immunity and Pathogenesis, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida, USA
| | - Travis J. Jewett
- Division of Immunity and Pathogenesis, Burnett School of Biomedical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida, USA
| | - Katerina Wolf
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology & Molecular Genetics, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington, Kentucky, USA
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IFNγ and Antibody Synergize To Enhance Protective Immunity against Chlamydia Dissemination and Female Reproductive Tract Reinfections. Infect Immun 2022; 90:e0032822. [PMID: 36374101 PMCID: PMC9753678 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00328-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
CD4 T cell-dependent IFNγ production and antibody are the two best known effectors for protective immunity against Chlamydia female reproductive tract (FRT) infection. Nevertheless, mice lacking either IFNγ or B cells can clear the vast majority of Chlamydia from the FRT, while suffering from varying degrees of disseminated infection. In this study, we investigated whether IFNγ and B cells play complementary roles in host defense against Chlamydia and evaluated their relative contributions in systemic and mucosal tissues. Using mice deficient in both IFNγ and B cells (IFNγ-/- x μMT), we showed that mice lacking both effectors were highly susceptible to lethal systemic bacterial dissemination following Chlamydia muridarum intravaginal infection. Passive transfer of immune convalescent serum, but not recombinant IFNγ, reduced bacterial burden in both systemic and mucosal tissues in IFNγ-/- x μMT mice. Notably, over the course of primary infection, we observed a reduction of bacterial shedding of more than 2 orders of magnitude in IFNγ-/- x μMT mice following both C. muridarum and C. trachomatis FRT infections. In contrast, no protective immunity against C. muridarum reinfection was detected in the absence of IFNγ and B cells. Together, our results suggest that IFNγ and B cells synergize to combat systemic Chlamydia dissemination, while additional IFNγ and B cell-independent mechanisms exist for host resistance to Chlamydia in the lower FRT.
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The dual role of cytokine responses to Chlamydia trachomatis infection in host pathogen crosstalk. Microb Pathog 2022; 173:105812. [DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2022.105812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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Lorenzen E, Contreras V, Olsen AW, Andersen P, Desjardins D, Rosenkrands I, Juel HB, Delache B, Langlois S, Delaugerre C, Joubert C, Dereuddre-Bosquet N, Bébéar C, De Barbeyrac B, Touati A, McKay PF, Shattock RJ, Le Grand R, Follmann F, Dietrich J. Multi-component prime-boost Chlamydia trachomatis vaccination regimes induce antibody and T cell responses and accelerate clearance of infection in a non-human primate model. Front Immunol 2022; 13:1057375. [PMID: 36505459 PMCID: PMC9726737 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1057375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
It is of international priority to develop a vaccine against sexually transmitted Chlamydia trachomatis infections to combat the continued global spread of the infection. The optimal immunization strategy still remains to be fully elucidated. The aim of this study was to evaluate immunization strategies in a nonhuman primate (NHP) model. Cynomolgus macaques (Macaqua fascicularis) were immunized following different multi-component prime-boost immunization-schedules and subsequently challenged with C. trachomatis SvD in the lower genital tract. The immunization antigens included the recombinant protein antigen CTH522 adjuvanted with CAF01 or aluminium hydroxide, MOMP DNA antigen and MOMP vector antigens (HuAd5 MOMP and MVA MOMP). All antigen constructs were highly immunogenic raising significant systemic C. trachomatis-specific IgG responses. In particularly the CTH522 protein vaccinated groups raised a fast and strong pecificsIgG in serum. The mapping of specific B cell epitopes within the MOMP showed that all vaccinated groups, recognized epitopes near or within the variable domains (VD) of MOMP, with a consistent VD4 response in all animals. Furthermore, serum from all vaccinated groups were able to in vitro neutralize both SvD, SvE and SvF. Antibody responses were reflected on the vaginal and ocular mucosa, which showed detectable levels of IgG. Vaccines also induced C. trachomatis-specific cell mediated responses, as shown by in vitro stimulation and intracellular cytokine staining of peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). In general, the protein (CTH522) vaccinated groups established a multifunctional CD4 T cell response, whereas the DNA and Vector vaccinated groups also established a CD8 T cells response. Following vaginal challenge with C. trachomatis SvD, several of the vaccinated groups showed accelerated clearance of the infection, but especially the DNA group, boosted with CAF01 adjuvanted CTH522 to achieve a balanced CD4/CD8 T cell response combined with an IgG response, showed accelerated clearance of the infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma Lorenzen
- Chlamydia Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Vanessa Contreras
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses & Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Anja W. Olsen
- Chlamydia Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Peter Andersen
- Novo Nordisk Foundation, Infectious Disease, Hellerup, Denmark
| | - Delphine Desjardins
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses & Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Ida Rosenkrands
- Chlamydia Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Helene Bæk Juel
- Novo Nordisk Foundation, Center for Basic Metabolic Research, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Benoit Delache
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses & Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Sebastien Langlois
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses & Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Constance Delaugerre
- Laboratory of Virology, Hôpital Saint-Louis, Assistance Publique Hôpitaux de Paris, Université de Paris, Paris Cité, Paris, France
| | - Christophe Joubert
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses & Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Nathalie Dereuddre-Bosquet
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses & Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Cécile Bébéar
- Bordeaux University Hopsital, Bacteriology Department, National Reference Centre for bacterial Sexually Transmitted Infections, Bordeaux, France
| | - Bertille De Barbeyrac
- Bordeaux University Hopsital, Bacteriology Department, National Reference Centre for bacterial Sexually Transmitted Infections, Bordeaux, France
| | - Arabella Touati
- Bordeaux University Hopsital, Bacteriology Department, National Reference Centre for bacterial Sexually Transmitted Infections, Bordeaux, France
| | - Paul F. McKay
- Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, St Mary’s Campus, London, United Kingdom
| | - Robin J. Shattock
- Department of Medicine, Imperial College London, St Mary’s Campus, London, United Kingdom
| | - Roger Le Grand
- Université Paris-Saclay, Inserm, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives (CEA), Center for Immunology of Viral, Auto-immune, Hematological and Bacterial diseases (IMVA-HB/IDMIT), Fontenay-aux-Roses & Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France
| | - Frank Follmann
- Chlamydia Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Jes Dietrich
- Chlamydia Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark,*Correspondence: Jes Dietrich,
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Tian L, Zhou W, Wu X, Hu Z, Qiu L, Zhang H, Chen X, Zhang S, Lu Z. CTLs: Killers of intracellular bacteria. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2022; 12:967679. [PMID: 36389159 PMCID: PMC9645434 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2022.967679] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Many microbial pathogens have evolved a range of capabilities to evade host immune defense mechanisms and to survive and multiply in host cells. The presence of host intracellular bacteria makes it difficult for specific antibodies to function. After the intracellular bacteria escape the attack of the innate immune system, such as phagocytes, they survive in cells, and then adaptive immunity comes into play. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) play an important role in eliminating intracellular bacteria. The regulation of key transcription factors could promote CD4+/CD8+ T cells to acquire cytolytic ability. The TCR-CD3 complex transduces activation signals generated by TCR recognition of antigen and promotes CTLs to generate multiple pathways to kill intracellular bacteria. In this review, the mechanism of CD4/CD8 CTLs differentiation and how CD4/CD8 CTLs kill intracellular bacteria are introduced. In addition, their application and prospects in the treatment of bacterial infections are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Tian
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Wei Zhou
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Xianwei Wu
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhuannan Hu
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Lei Qiu
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Huiyong Zhang
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Xue Chen
- School of Life Sciences, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China
| | - Shaoyan Zhang
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhenhui Lu
- Institute of Respiratory Diseases, Longhua Hospital, Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shanghai, China
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Neuwirth T, Knapp K, Stary G. (Not) Home alone: Antigen presenting cell - T Cell communication in barrier tissues. Front Immunol 2022; 13:984356. [PMID: 36248804 PMCID: PMC9556809 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.984356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Priming of T cells by antigen presenting cells (APCs) is essential for T cell fate decisions, enabling T cells to migrate to specific tissues to exert their effector functions. Previously, these interactions were mainly explored using blood-derived cells or animal models. With great advances in single cell RNA-sequencing techniques enabling analysis of tissue-derived cells, it has become clear that subsets of APCs are responsible for priming and modulating heterogeneous T cell effector responses in different tissues. This composition of APCs and T cells in tissues is essential for maintaining homeostasis and is known to be skewed in infection and inflammation, leading to pathological T cell responses. This review highlights the commonalities and differences of T cell priming and subsequent effector function in multiple barrier tissues such as the skin, intestine and female reproductive tract. Further, we provide an overview of how this process is altered during tissue-specific infections which are known to cause chronic inflammation and how this knowledge could be harnessed to modify T cell responses in barrier tissue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teresa Neuwirth
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Katja Knapp
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Georg Stary
- Department of Dermatology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- CeMM Research Center for Molecular Medicine of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna, Austria
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Rare and Undiagnosed Diseases, Vienna, Austria
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27
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Borges ÁH, Follmann F, Dietrich J. Chlamydia trachomatis vaccine development - a view on the current challenges and how to move forward. Expert Rev Vaccines 2022; 21:1555-1567. [PMID: 36004386 DOI: 10.1080/14760584.2022.2117694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common sexually transmitted bacterial pathogen in the world. A licensed vaccine is not yet available, but the first vaccines have entered clinical trials. AREAS COVERED : We describe the progress that has been made in our understanding of the type of immunity that a protective vaccine should induce, and the challenges that vaccine developers face. We also focus on the clinical development of a chlamydia vaccine. The first chlamydia vaccine candidate has now been tested in a clinical phase-I trial, and another phase-I trial is currently running. We discuss what it will take to continue this development and what future trial setups could look like. EXPERT OPINION The chlamydia field is coming of age and the first phase I clinical trial of a C. trachomatis vaccine has been successfully completed. We expect and hope that this will motivate various stakeholders to support further development of chlamydia vaccines in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Álvaro H Borges
- Statens Serum Institut, Department of Infectious Diseases Immunology, Kobenhavn, 2300 Denmark
| | | | - Jes Dietrich
- Statens Serum Institut, Department of Infectious Diseases Immunology, Kobenhavn, 2300 Denmark
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Th1 cells are dispensable for primary clearance of Chlamydia from the female reproductive tract of mice. PLoS Pathog 2022; 18:e1010333. [PMID: 35196366 PMCID: PMC8901068 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1010333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2021] [Revised: 03/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/02/2022] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Protective immune responses to Chlamydia infection within the female reproductive tract (FRT) are incompletely understood. MHC class II-restricted CD4 Th1 responses are believed to be vital for bacterial clearance due to their capacity to secrete IFN-γ, but an essential requirement for T-bet-expressing Th1 cells has yet to be demonstrated in the mouse model of Chlamydia infection. Here, we investigated the role of T-bet and IFN-γ in primary clearance of Chlamydia after FRT infection. Surprisingly, IFN-γ producing CD4 T cells from the FRT expressed low levels of T-bet throughout infection, suggesting that classical T-bet-expressing Th1 cells are inefficiently generated and therefore unlikely to participate in bacteria clearance. Furthermore, mice deficient in T-bet expression or with a CD4-specific T-bet deficiency cleared FRT infection similarly to wild-type controls. T-bet-deficient mice displayed significant skewing of FRT CD4 T cells towards Th17 responses, demonstrating that compensatory effector pathways are generated in the absence of Th1 cells. In marked contrast, IFN-γ-, and IFN-γR-deficient mice were able to reduce FRT bacterial burdens, but suffered systemic bacterial dissemination and 100% mortality. Together, these data demonstrate that IFN-γ signaling is essential to protect mice from fatal systemic disease, but that classical T-bet-expressing Th1 cells are non-essential for primary clearance within the FRT. Exploring the protective contribution of Th1 cells versus other CD4 effector lineages could provide important information for the generation of new Chlamydia vaccines. The production of IFN-γ by CD4 Th1 cells is thought to be critical for the clearance of Chlamydia from the female reproductive tract (FRT), but this has not been formally tested. Here we demonstrate that T-bet+ Th1 cells are not essential for effective Chlamydia clearance. Furthermore, the impact of IFN-γ deficiency or depletion is largely observed as a failure to control bacterial dissemination, rather than clearance from the FRT. Together, these data suggest that different immunological mechanisms are responsible for restraining systemic spread of bacteria versus FRT control. Defining alternative non-Th1 CD4 effector mechanisms that are responsible for controlling Chlamydia replication within the FRT could be foundational for future vaccine development.
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Webster E, Seiger KW, Core SB, Collar AL, Knapp-Broas H, Graham J, Shrestha M, Afzaal S, Geisler WM, Wheeler CM, Chackerian B, Frietze KM, Lijek RS. Immunogenicity and Protective Capacity of a Virus-like Particle Vaccine against Chlamydia trachomatis Type 3 Secretion System Tip Protein, CT584. Vaccines (Basel) 2022; 10:vaccines10010111. [PMID: 35062772 PMCID: PMC8779370 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines10010111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Revised: 01/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/07/2022] [Indexed: 10/28/2022] Open
Abstract
An effective vaccine against Chlamydia trachomatis is urgently needed as infection rates continue to rise and C. trachomatis causes reproductive morbidity. An obligate intracellular pathogen, C. trachomatis employs a type 3 secretion system (T3SS) for host cell entry. The tip of the injectosome is composed of the protein CT584, which represents a potential target for neutralization with vaccine-induced antibody. Here, we investigate the immunogenicity and efficacy of a vaccine made of CT584 epitopes coupled to a bacteriophage virus-like particle (VLP), a novel platform for Chlamydia vaccines modeled on the success of HPV vaccines. Female mice were immunized intramuscularly, challenged transcervically with C. trachomatis, and assessed for systemic and local antibody responses and bacterial burden in the upper genital tract. Immunization resulted in a 3-log increase in epitope-specific IgG in serum and uterine homogenates and in the detection of epitope-specific IgG in uterine lavage at low levels. By contrast, sera from women infected with C. trachomatis and virgin controls had similarly low titers to CT584 epitopes, suggesting these epitopes are not systemically immunogenic during natural infection but can be rendered immunogenic by the VLP platform. C. trachomatis burden in the upper genital tract of mice varied after active immunization, yet passive protection was achieved when immune sera were pre-incubated with C. trachomatis prior to inoculation into the genital tract. These data demonstrate the potential for antibody against the T3SS to contribute to protection against C. trachomatis and the value of VLPs as a novel platform for C. trachomatis vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Everett Webster
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075, USA; (E.W.); (K.W.S.); (H.K.-B.); (J.G.); (M.S.); (S.A.)
| | - Kyra W. Seiger
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075, USA; (E.W.); (K.W.S.); (H.K.-B.); (J.G.); (M.S.); (S.A.)
| | - Susan B. Core
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, MSC 08-4660, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; (S.B.C.); (A.L.C.); (B.C.); (K.M.F.)
| | - Amanda L. Collar
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, MSC 08-4660, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; (S.B.C.); (A.L.C.); (B.C.); (K.M.F.)
| | - Hannah Knapp-Broas
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075, USA; (E.W.); (K.W.S.); (H.K.-B.); (J.G.); (M.S.); (S.A.)
| | - June Graham
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075, USA; (E.W.); (K.W.S.); (H.K.-B.); (J.G.); (M.S.); (S.A.)
| | - Muskan Shrestha
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075, USA; (E.W.); (K.W.S.); (H.K.-B.); (J.G.); (M.S.); (S.A.)
| | - Sarah Afzaal
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075, USA; (E.W.); (K.W.S.); (H.K.-B.); (J.G.); (M.S.); (S.A.)
| | - William M. Geisler
- Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 703 19th St. S, ZRB 242, Birmingham, AL 35294, USA;
| | - Cosette M. Wheeler
- Center for HPV Prevention, University of New Mexico Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, MSC 08-4640, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA;
| | - Bryce Chackerian
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, MSC 08-4660, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; (S.B.C.); (A.L.C.); (B.C.); (K.M.F.)
| | - Kathryn M. Frietze
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, University of New Mexico, MSC 08-4660, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA; (S.B.C.); (A.L.C.); (B.C.); (K.M.F.)
- Clinical and Translational Science Center, University of New Mexico Health Sciences, MSC 08-4635, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131, USA
| | - Rebeccah S. Lijek
- Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, 50 College St., South Hadley, MA 01075, USA; (E.W.); (K.W.S.); (H.K.-B.); (J.G.); (M.S.); (S.A.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-(413)-538-2487
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Abisoye-Ogunniyan A, Carrano IM, Weilhammer DR, Gilmore SF, Fischer NO, Pal S, de la Maza LM, Coleman MA, Rasley A. A Survey of Preclinical Studies Evaluating Nanoparticle-Based Vaccines Against Non-Viral Sexually Transmitted Infections. Front Pharmacol 2021; 12:768461. [PMID: 34899322 PMCID: PMC8662999 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2021.768461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2021] [Accepted: 11/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A worldwide estimate of over one million STIs are acquired daily and there is a desperate need for effective preventive as well as therapeutic measures to curtail this global health burden. Vaccines have been the most effective means for the control and potential eradication of infectious diseases; however, the development of vaccines against STIs has been a daunting task requiring extensive research for the development of safe and efficacious formulations. Nanoparticle-based vaccines represent a promising platform as they offer benefits such as targeted antigen presentation and delivery, co-localized antigen-adjuvant combinations for enhanced immunogenicity, and can be designed to be biologically inert. Here we discuss promising types of nanoparticles along with outcomes from nanoparticle-based vaccine preclinical studies against non-viral STIs including chlamydia, syphilis, gonorrhea, and recommendations for future nanoparticle-based vaccines against STIs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abisola Abisoye-Ogunniyan
- Biosciences and Biotechnology Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, United States
| | - Isabella M Carrano
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, Rausser College of Natural Resources, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
| | - Dina R Weilhammer
- Biosciences and Biotechnology Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, United States
| | - Sean F Gilmore
- Biosciences and Biotechnology Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, United States
| | - Nicholas O Fischer
- Biosciences and Biotechnology Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, United States
| | - Sukumar Pal
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States
| | - Luis M de la Maza
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, United States
| | - Matthew A Coleman
- Biosciences and Biotechnology Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, United States
| | - Amy Rasley
- Biosciences and Biotechnology Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, United States
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Dimond ZE, Suchland RJ, Baid S, LaBrie SD, Soules KR, Stanley J, Carrell S, Kwong F, Wang Y, Rockey DD, Hybiske K, Hefty PS. Inter-species lateral gene transfer focused on the Chlamydia plasticity zone identifies loci associated with immediate cytotoxicity and inclusion stability. Mol Microbiol 2021; 116:1433-1448. [PMID: 34738268 PMCID: PMC9119408 DOI: 10.1111/mmi.14832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 10/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Chlamydia muridarum actively grows in murine mucosae and is a representative model of human chlamydial genital tract disease. In contrast, C. trachomatis infections in mice are limited and rarely cause disease. The factors that contribute to these differences in host adaptation and specificity remain elusive. Overall genomic similarity leads to challenges in the understanding of these significant differences in tropism. A region of major genetic divergence termed the plasticity zone (PZ) has been hypothesized to contribute to the host specificity. To evaluate this hypothesis, lateral gene transfer was used to generate multiple hetero-genomic strains that are predominately C. trachomatis but have replaced regions of the PZ with those from C. muridarum. In vitro analysis of these chimeras revealed C. trachomatis-like growth as well as poor mouse infection capabilities. Growth-independent cytotoxicity phenotypes have been ascribed to three large putative cytotoxins (LCT) encoded in the C. muridarum PZ. However, analysis of PZ chimeras supported that gene products other than the LCTs are responsible for cytopathic and cytotoxic phenotypes. Growth analysis of associated chimeras also led to the discovery of an inclusion protein, CTL0402 (CT147), and homolog TC0424, which was critical for the integrity of the inclusion and preventing apoptosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zoe E. Dimond
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Robert J. Suchland
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Srishti Baid
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Scott D. LaBrie
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Katelyn R. Soules
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Jacob Stanley
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
| | - Steven Carrell
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Forrest Kwong
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Yibing Wang
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Daniel D. Rockey
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Kevin Hybiske
- Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - P. Scott Hefty
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, University of Kansas, Lawrence, Kansas, USA
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Olson KM, Geisler WM, Bakshi RK, Gupta K, Tiwari HK. Predicting the Probability of Chlamydia Reinfection in African American Women Using Immunologic and Genetic Determinants in a Bayesian Model. Sex Transm Dis 2021; 48:813-818. [PMID: 33993163 PMCID: PMC8550879 DOI: 10.1097/olq.0000000000001468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND African Americans have the highest rates of Chlamydia trachomatis (CT) infection in the United States and also high reinfection rates. The primary objective of this study was to develop a Bayesian model to predict the probability of CT reinfection in African American women using immunogenetic data. METHODS We analyzed data from a cohort of CT-infected African American women enrolled at the time they returned to a clinic in Birmingham, AL, for the treatment of a positive routine CT test result. We modeled the probability of CT reinfection within 6 months after treatment using logistic regression in a Bayesian framework. Predictors of interest were presence or absence of an HLA-DQB1*06 allele and CT-specific CD4+ IFN-γ response, both of which we had previously reported were independently associated with CT reinfection risk. RESULTS Among 99 participants evaluated, the probability of reinfection for those with a CT-specific CD4+ IFN-γ response and no HLA-DQB1*06 alleles was 14.1% (95% credible interval [CI], 3.0%-45.0%), whereas the probability of reinfection for those without a CT-specific CD4+ IFN-γ response and at least one HLA-DQB1*06 allele was 61.5% (95% CI, 23.1%-89.7%). CONCLUSIONS Our model demonstrated that presence or absence of an HLA-DQB1*06 allele and CT-specific CD4+ IFN-γ response can have an impact on the predictive probability of CT reinfection in African American women.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristin M. Olson
- School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - William M. Geisler
- School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Rakesh K. Bakshi
- School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Kanupriya Gupta
- School of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
- Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Hemant K. Tiwari
- Department of Biostatistics, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA
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Amaral AF, McQueen BE, Bellingham-Johnstun K, Poston TB, Darville T, Nagarajan UM, Laplante C, Käser T. Host-Pathogen Interactions of Chlamydia trachomatis in Porcine Oviduct Epithelial Cells. Pathogens 2021; 10:pathogens10101270. [PMID: 34684219 PMCID: PMC8540921 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens10101270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2021] [Revised: 09/27/2021] [Accepted: 09/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct) causes the most prevalent bacterial sexually transmitted disease leading to ectopic pregnancy and infertility. Swine not only have many similarities to humans, but they are also susceptible to Ct. Despite these benefits and the ease of access to primary tissue from this food animal, in vitro research in swine has been underutilized. This study will provide basic understanding of the Ct host–pathogen interactions in porcine oviduct epithelial cells (pOECs)—the counterparts of human Fallopian tube epithelial cells. Using NanoString technology, flow cytometry, and confocal and transmission-electron microscopy, we studied the Ct developmental cycle in pOECs, the cellular immune response, and the expression and location of the tight junction protein claudin-4. We show that Ct productively completes its developmental cycle in pOECs and induces an immune response to Ct similar to human cells: Ct mainly induced the upregulation of interferon regulated genes and T-cell attracting chemokines. Furthermore, Ct infection induced an accumulation of claudin-4 in the Ct inclusion with a coinciding reduction of membrane-bound claudin-4. Downstream effects of the reduced membrane-bound claudin-4 expression could potentially include a reduction in tight-junction expression, impaired epithelial barrier function as well as increased susceptibility to co-infections. Thereby, this study justifies the investigation of the effect of Ct on tight junctions and the mucosal epithelial barrier function. Taken together, this study demonstrates that primary pOECs represent an excellent in vitro model for research into Ct pathogenesis, cell biology and immunity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda F. Amaral
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA;
- Comparative Medicine Institute, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA
| | - Bryan E. McQueen
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, 116 Manning Drive, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (B.E.M.); (T.D.)
| | - Kimberly Bellingham-Johnstun
- Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA; (K.B.-J.); (C.L.)
| | - Taylor B. Poston
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, 116 Manning Drive, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (T.B.P.); (U.M.N.)
| | - Toni Darville
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, 116 Manning Drive, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (B.E.M.); (T.D.)
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, 116 Manning Drive, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (T.B.P.); (U.M.N.)
| | - Uma M. Nagarajan
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, 116 Manning Drive, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA; (T.B.P.); (U.M.N.)
| | - Caroline Laplante
- Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA; (K.B.-J.); (C.L.)
| | - Tobias Käser
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA;
- Comparative Medicine Institute, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-919-513-6352
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Son YM, Sun J. Co-Ordination of Mucosal B Cell and CD8 T Cell Memory by Tissue-Resident CD4 Helper T Cells. Cells 2021; 10:cells10092355. [PMID: 34572004 PMCID: PMC8471972 DOI: 10.3390/cells10092355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2021] [Revised: 09/02/2021] [Accepted: 09/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Adaptive cellular immunity plays a major role in clearing microbial invasion of mucosal tissues in mammals. Following the clearance of primary pathogens, memory lymphocytes are established both systemically and locally at pathogen entry sites. Recently, resident memory CD8 T and B cells (TRM and BRM respectively), which are parked mainly in non-lymphoid mucosal tissues, were characterized and demonstrated to be essential for protection against secondary microbial invasion. Here we reviewed the current understanding of the cellular and molecular cues regulating CD8 TRM and BRM development, maintenance and function. We focused particularly on elucidating the role of a novel tissue-resident helper T (TRH) cell population in assisting TRM and BRM responses in the respiratory mucosa following viral infection. Finally, we argue that the promotion of TRH responses by future mucosal vaccines would be key to the development of successful universal influenza or coronavirus vaccines, providing long-lasting immunity against a broad spectrum of viral strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Young Min Son
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA;
- Department of Immunology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
| | - Jie Sun
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Department of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA;
- Department of Immunology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
- Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
- Carter Immunology Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
- Division of Infectious Disease and International Health, Department of Medicine, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA
- Correspondence: or
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Richardson S, Medhavi F, Tanner T, Lundy S, Omosun Y, Igietseme JU, Carroll D, Eko FO. Cellular Basis for the Enhanced Efficacy of the Fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3 Ligand (FL) Adjuvanted VCG-Based Chlamydia abortus Vaccine. Front Immunol 2021; 12:698737. [PMID: 34249004 PMCID: PMC8264281 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.698737] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/22/2021] [Accepted: 06/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Efficacious vaccines are needed to control genital chlamydial diseases in humans and the veterinary industry. We previously reported a C. abortus (Cab) vaccine comprising recombinant Vibrio cholerae ghosts (rVCG) expressing the conserved and immunogenic N-terminal region of the Cab polymorphic membrane protein D (rVCG-Pmp18.1) protein that protected mice against intravaginal challenge. In this study, we investigated the immunomodulatory effect of the hematopoietic progenitor activator cytokine, Fms-like tyrosine kinase 3-ligand (FL) when co-administered with the rVCG-Pmp18.1 vaccine as a strategy to enhance the protective efficacy and the potential mechanism of immunomodulation. Groups of female C57BL/6J mice were immunized and boosted twice intranasally (IN) with rVCG-PmpD18.1 with and without FL or purified rPmp18.1 or rVCG-gD2 (antigen control) or PBS (medium) per mouse. The results revealed that co-administration of the vaccine with FL enhanced antigen-specific cellular and humoral immune responses and protected against live Cab genital infection. Comparative analysis of immune cell phenotypes infiltrating mucosal and systemic immune inductive tissue sites following immunization revealed that co-administration of rVCG-Pmp18.1 with FL significantly enhanced the number of macrophages, dendritic and NK cells, γδ and NK T cells in the spleen (systemic) and iliac lymph nodes (ILN) draining the genital tract (mucosal) tissues compared to rVCG-Pmp18.1 alone. Furthermore, FL enhanced monocyte infiltration in the ILN, while CD19+ B cells and CD4+ T cells were enhanced in the spleen. These results indicate that the immunomodulatory effect of FL is associated with its ability to mobilize innate immune cells and subsequent activation of robust antigen-specific immune effectors in mucosal and systemic lymphoid tissues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shakyra Richardson
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Fnu Medhavi
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Tayhlor Tanner
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Stephanie Lundy
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Yusuf Omosun
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Joseph U. Igietseme
- National Center for Emerging Zoonotic and Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Darin Carroll
- National Center for Emerging Zoonotic and Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Francis O. Eko
- Department of Microbiology, Biochemistry and Immunology, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
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36
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Reduced uterine tissue damage during Chlamydia muridarum infection in TREM-1,3 deficient mice. Infect Immun 2021; 89:e0007221. [PMID: 34125599 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00072-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Genital infections with Chlamydia trachomatis can lead to uterine and oviduct tissue damage in the female reproductive tract. Neutrophils are strongly associated with tissue damage during chlamydial infection, while an adaptive CD4 T cell response is necessary to combat infection. Activation of triggering receptor expressed on myeloid cells-1 (TREM-1) on neutrophils has previously been shown to induce and/or enhance degranulation synergistically with TLR-signaling. Additionally, TREM-1 can promote neutrophil transepithelial migration. In this study, we sought to determine the contribution of TREM-1,3 in immunopathology in the female mouse genital tract during Chlamydia muridarum infection. Relative to control mice, trem1,3-/- mice had no difference in chlamydial burden or duration of lower genital tract infection. We also observed a similar incidence of oviduct hydrosalpinx 45 days post-infection in trem1,3-/- compared to WT mice. However, compared to WT, trem1,3-/- mice developed significantly fewer uterine horn hydrometra. Early in infection, trem1,3-/- mice displayed a notable decrease in the number of uterine glands containing polymorphonuclear cells and uterine horn lumens had fewer neutrophils, with increased G-CSF. Trem1,3-/- mice also had reduced erosion of the luminal epithelium. These data indicate TREM-1,3 contributes to transepithelial neutrophil migration in the uterus and uterine glands, promoting the development of uterine hydrometra in infected mice.
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Mayer RL, Impens F. Immunopeptidomics for next-generation bacterial vaccine development. Trends Microbiol 2021; 29:1034-1045. [PMID: 34030969 DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2021.04.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance is an increasing global threat and alternative treatments substituting failing antibiotics are urgently needed. Vaccines are recognized as highly effective tools to mitigate antimicrobial resistance; however, the selection of bacterial antigens as vaccine candidates remains challenging. In recent years, advances in mass spectrometry-based proteomics have led to the development of so-called immunopeptidomics approaches that allow the untargeted discovery of bacterial epitopes that are presented on the surface of infected cells. Especially for intracellular bacterial pathogens, immunopeptidomics holds great promise to uncover antigens that can be encoded in viral vector- or nucleic acid-based vaccines. This review provides an overview of immunopeptidomics studies on intracellular bacterial pathogens and considers future directions and challenges in advancing towards next-generation vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rupert L Mayer
- VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology, VIB, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Biomolecular Medicine, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; VIB Proteomics Core, VIB, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Francis Impens
- VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology, VIB, Ghent, Belgium; Department of Biomolecular Medicine, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium; VIB Proteomics Core, VIB, Ghent, Belgium.
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Olsen AW, Rosenkrands I, Holland MJ, Andersen P, Follmann F. A Chlamydia trachomatis VD1-MOMP vaccine elicits cross-neutralizing and protective antibodies against C/C-related complex serovars. NPJ Vaccines 2021; 6:58. [PMID: 33875654 PMCID: PMC8055873 DOI: 10.1038/s41541-021-00312-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Ocular and urogenital infections with Chlamydia trachomatis (C.t.) are caused by a range of different serovars. The first C.t. vaccine in clinical development (CTH522/CAF®01) induced neutralizing antibodies directed to the variable domain 4 (VD4) region of major outer membrane protein (MOMP), covering predominantly B and intermediate groups of serovars. The VD1 region of MOMP contains neutralizing B-cell epitopes targeting serovars of the C and C-related complex. Using an immuno-repeat strategy, we extended the VD1 region of SvA and SvJ to include surrounding conserved segments, extVD1A and extVD1J, and repeated this region four times. The extVD1A*4 was most immunogenic with broad cross-surface and neutralizing reactivity against representative members of the C and C-related complex serovars. Importantly, in vitro results for extVD1A*4 translated into in vivo biological effects, demonstrated by in vivo neutralization of SvA and protection/cross-protection against intravaginal challenge with both SvA and the heterologous SvIa strain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anja Weinreich Olsen
- Center for Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark.
| | - Ida Rosenkrands
- Center for Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Martin J Holland
- Clinical Research Department, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, United Kingdom
| | - Peter Andersen
- Center for Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark.,Department of Immunology and Microbiology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Frank Follmann
- Center for Vaccine Research, Department of Infectious Disease Immunology, Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen, Denmark
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Sahu R, Dixit S, Verma R, Duncan SA, Smith L, Giambartolomei GH, Singh SR, Dennis VA. Encapsulation of Recombinant MOMP in Extended-Releasing PLGA 85:15 Nanoparticles Confer Protective Immunity Against a Chlamydia muridarum Genital Challenge and Re-Challenge. Front Immunol 2021; 12:660932. [PMID: 33936096 PMCID: PMC8081181 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.660932] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Recently we reported the immune-potentiating capacity of a Chlamydia nanovaccine (PLGA-rMOMP) comprising rMOMP (recombinant major outer membrane protein) encapsulated in extended-releasing PLGA [poly (D, L-lactide-co-glycolide) (85:15)] nanoparticles. Here we hypothesized that PLGA-rMOMP would bolster immune-effector mechanisms to confer protective efficacy in mice against a Chlamydia muridarum genital challenge and re-challenge. Female BALB/c mice received three immunizations, either subcutaneously (SC) or intranasally (IN), before receiving an intravaginal challenge with C. muridarum on day 49 and a re-challenge on day 170. Both the SC and IN immunization routes protected mice against genital challenge with enhanced protection after a re-challenge, especially in the SC mice. The nanovaccine induced robust antigen-specific Th1 (IFN-γ, IL-2) and IL-17 cytokines plus CD4+ proliferating T-cells and memory (CD44high CD62Lhigh) and effector (CD44high CD62Llow) phenotypes in immunized mice. Parallel induction of antigen-specific systemic and mucosal Th1 (IgG2a, IgG2b), Th2 (IgG1), and IgA antibodies were also noted. Importantly, immunized mice produced highly functional Th1 avidity and serum antibodies that neutralized C. muridarum infectivity of McCoy fibroblasts in-vitro that correlated with their respective protection levels. The SC, rather than the IN immunization route, triggered higher cellular and humoral immune effectors that improved mice protection against genital C. muridarum. We report for the first time that the extended-releasing PLGA 85:15 encapsulated rMOMP nanovaccine confers protective immunity in mice against genital Chlamydia and advances the potential towards acquiring a nano-based Chlamydia vaccine.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajnish Sahu
- Center for NanoBiotechnology Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, United States
| | - Saurabh Dixit
- Center for NanoBiotechnology Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, United States
| | - Richa Verma
- Center for NanoBiotechnology Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, United States
| | - Skyla A. Duncan
- Center for NanoBiotechnology Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, United States
| | - Lula Smith
- Center for NanoBiotechnology Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, United States
| | - Guillermo H. Giambartolomei
- Instituto de Inmunología, Genética y Metabolismo (INIGEM), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Shree R. Singh
- Center for NanoBiotechnology Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, United States
| | - Vida A. Dennis
- Center for NanoBiotechnology Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Alabama State University, Montgomery, AL, United States
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40
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Dockterman J, Coers J. Immunopathogenesis of genital Chlamydia infection: insights from mouse models. Pathog Dis 2021; 79:ftab012. [PMID: 33538819 PMCID: PMC8189015 DOI: 10.1093/femspd/ftab012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2020] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Chlamydiae are pathogenic intracellular bacteria that cause a wide variety of diseases throughout the globe, affecting the eye, lung, coronary arteries and female genital tract. Rather than by direct cellular toxicity, Chlamydia infection generally causes pathology by inducing fibrosis and scarring that is largely mediated by host inflammation. While a robust immune response is required for clearance of the infection, certain elements of that immune response may also damage infected tissue, leading to, in the case of female genital infection, disease sequelae such as pelvic inflammatory disease, infertility and ectopic pregnancy. It has become increasingly clear that the components of the immune system that destroy bacteria and those that cause pathology only partially overlap. In the ongoing quest for a vaccine that prevents Chlamydia-induced disease, it is important to target mechanisms that can achieve protective immunity while preventing mechanisms that damage tissue. This review focuses on mouse models of genital Chlamydia infection and synthesizes recent studies to generate a comprehensive model for immunity in the murine female genital tract, clarifying the respective contributions of various branches of innate and adaptive immunity to both host protection and pathogenic genital scarring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacob Dockterman
- Department of Immunology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 22710, USA
| | - Jörn Coers
- Department of Immunology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 22710, USA
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 22710, USA
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41
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D Helble J, N Starnbach M. T cell responses to Chlamydia. Pathog Dis 2021; 79:6164867. [PMID: 33693620 DOI: 10.1093/femspd/ftab014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Accepted: 03/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis is the most commonly reported sexually transmitted infection in the United States. The high prevalence of infection and lack of a vaccine indicate a critical knowledge gap surrounding the host's response to infection and how to effectively generate protective immunity. The immune response to C. trachomatis is complex, with cells of the adaptive immune system playing a crucial role in bacterial clearance. Here, we discuss the CD4+ and CD8+ T cell response to Chlamydia, the importance of antigen specificity and the role of memory T cells during the recall response. Ultimately, a deeper understanding of protective immune responses is necessary to develop a vaccine that prevents the inflammatory diseases associated with Chlamydia infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer D Helble
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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Innate IFN-γ Is Essential for Systemic Chlamydia muridarum Control in Mice, While CD4 T Cell-Dependent IFN-γ Production Is Highly Redundant in the Female Reproductive Tract. Infect Immun 2021; 89:IAI.00541-20. [PMID: 33257535 PMCID: PMC8097277 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00541-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2020] [Accepted: 11/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Protective immunity against the obligate intracellular bacterium Chlamydia has long been thought to rely on CD4 T cell-dependent gamma interferon (IFN-γ) production. Nevertheless, whether IFN-γ is produced by other cellular sources during Chlamydia infection and how CD4 T cell-dependent and -independent IFN-γ contribute differently to host resistance have not been carefully evaluated. In this study, we dissected the requirements of IFN-γ produced by innate immune cells and CD4 T cells for resolution of Chlamydia muridarum female reproductive tract (FRT) infection. After C. muridarum intravaginal infection, IFN-γ-deficient and T cell-deficient mice exhibited opposite phenotypes for survival and bacterial shedding at the FRT mucosa, demonstrating the distinct requirements for IFN-γ and CD4 T cells in host defense against Chlamydia In Rag1-deficient mice, IFN-γ produced by innate lymphocytes (ILCs) accounted for early bacterial control and prolonged survival in the absence of adaptive immunity. Although type I ILCs are potent IFN-γ producers, we found that mature NK cells and ILC1s were not the sole sources of innate IFN-γ in response to Chlamydia By conducting T cell adoptive transfer, we showed definitively that IFN-γ-deficient CD4 T cells were sufficient for effective bacterial killing in the FRT during the first 21 days of infection and reduced bacterial burden more than 1,000-fold, although mice receiving IFN-γ-deficient CD4 T cells failed to completely eradicate the bacteria from the FRT like their counterparts receiving wild-type (WT) CD4 T cells. Together, our results revealed that innate IFN-γ is essential for preventing systemic Chlamydia dissemination, whereas IFN-γ produced by CD4 T cells is largely redundant at the FRT mucosa.
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Dzakah EE, Huang L, Xue Y, Wei S, Wang X, Chen H, Shui J, Kyei F, Rashid F, Zheng H, Yang B, Tang S. Host cell response and distinct gene expression profiles at different stages of Chlamydia trachomatis infection reveals stage-specific biomarkers of infection. BMC Microbiol 2021; 21:3. [PMID: 33397284 PMCID: PMC7784309 DOI: 10.1186/s12866-020-02061-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common sexually transmitted infection and the bacterial agent of trachoma globally. C. trachomatis undergoes a biphasic developmental cycle involving an infectious elementary body and a replicative reticulate body. Little is currently known about the gene expression dynamics of host cell mRNAs, lncRNAs, and miRNAs at different stages of C. trachomatis development. Results Here, we performed RNA-seq and miR-seq on HeLa cells infected with C. trachomatis serovar E at 20 h post-infection (hpi) and 44 hpi with or without IFN-γ treatment. Our study identified and validated differentially expressed host cell mRNAs, lncRNAs, and miRNAs during infection. Host cells at 20 hpi showed the most differential upregulation of both coding and non-coding genes while at 44 hpi in the presence of IFN-γ resulted in a dramatic downregulation of a large proportion of host genes. Using RT-qPCR, we validated the top 5 upregulated mRNAs and miRNAs, which are specific for different stages of C. trachomatis development. One of the commonly expressed miRNAs at all three stages of C. trachomatis development, miR-193b-5p, showed significant expression in clinical serum samples of C. trachomatis-infected patients as compared to sera from healthy controls and HIV-1-infected patients. Furthermore, we observed significant upregulation of antigen processing and presentation, and T helper cell differentiation pathways at 20 hpi whereas T cell receptor, mTOR, and Rap1 pathways were modulated at 44 hpi. Treatment with IFN-γ at 44 hpi showed the upregulation of cytokine-cytokine receptor interaction, FoxO signaling, and Ras signaling pathways. Conclusions Our study documented transcriptional manipulation of the host cell genomes and the upregulation of stage-specific signaling pathways necessary for the survival of the pathogen and could serve as potential biomarkers in the diagnosis and management of the disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emmanuel Enoch Dzakah
- Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.,Department of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biological Sciences, College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Liping Huang
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yaohua Xue
- Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuai Wei
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Xiaolin Wang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Hongliang Chen
- The First People's Hospital of Chenzhou, University of South China, Chenzhou, Hunan, China
| | - Jingwei Shui
- Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Foster Kyei
- Department of Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, School of Biological Sciences, College of Agriculture and Natural Sciences, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana
| | - Farooq Rashid
- Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Heping Zheng
- Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Bing Yang
- Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shixing Tang
- Dermatology Hospital of Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China. .,Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Research, School of Public Health, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
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Schott BH, Antonia AL, Wang L, Pittman KJ, Sixt BS, Barnes AB, Valdivia RH, Ko DC. Modeling of variables in cellular infection reveals CXCL10 levels are regulated by human genetic variation and the Chlamydia-encoded CPAF protease. Sci Rep 2020; 10:18269. [PMID: 33106516 PMCID: PMC7588472 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-75129-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2020] [Accepted: 10/12/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Susceptibility to infectious diseases is determined by a complex interaction between host and pathogen. For infections with the obligate intracellular bacterium Chlamydia trachomatis, variation in immune activation and disease presentation are regulated by both host genetic diversity and pathogen immune evasion. Previously, we discovered a single nucleotide polymorphism (rs2869462) associated with absolute abundance of CXCL10, a pro-inflammatory T-cell chemokine. Here, we report that levels of CXCL10 change during C. trachomatis infection of cultured cells in a manner dependent on both host and pathogen. Linear modeling of cellular traits associated with CXCL10 levels identified a strong, negative correlation with bacterial burden, suggesting that C. trachomatis actively suppresses CXCL10. We identified the pathogen-encoded factor responsible for this suppression as the chlamydial protease- or proteasome-like activity factor, CPAF. Further, we applied our modeling approach to other host cytokines in response to C. trachomatis and found evidence that RANTES, another T-cell chemoattractant, is actively suppressed by Chlamydia. However, this observed suppression of RANTES is not mediated by CPAF. Overall, our results demonstrate that CPAF suppresses CXCL10 to evade the host cytokine response and that modeling of cellular infection parameters can reveal previously unrecognized facets of host-pathogen interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin H Schott
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
- Duke University Program in Genetics and Genomics, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Alejandro L Antonia
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Liuyang Wang
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Kelly J Pittman
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Barbara S Sixt
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
- Laboratory for Molecular Infection Medicine Sweden (MIMS), Umeå Centre for Microbial Research, Department of Molecular Biology, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Alyson B Barnes
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Raphael H Valdivia
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA
| | - Dennis C Ko
- Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, School of Medicine, Duke University, 0049 CARL Building Box 3053, 213 Research Drive, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Duke University Program in Genetics and Genomics, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
- Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, Duke University, Durham, NC, 27710, USA.
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Helble JD, Mann AO, Starnbach MN. Antigen-specific memory and naïve CD4+ T cells following secondary Chlamydia trachomatis infection. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0240670. [PMID: 33091023 PMCID: PMC7580951 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0240670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2020] [Accepted: 09/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Memory antigen-specific CD4+ T cells against Chlamydia trachomatis are necessary for protection against secondary genital tract infection. While it is known that naïve antigen-specific CD4+ T cells can traffic to the genital tract in an antigen-specific manner, these T cells are not protective during primary infection. Here, we sought to compare the differences between memory and naïve antigen-specific CD4+ T cells in the same mouse following secondary infection using transgenic CD4+ T cells (NR1 T cells). Using RNA sequencing, we found that there were subtle but distinct differences between these two T cell populations. Naïve NR1 T cells significantly upregulated cell cycle genes and were more proliferative than memory NR1 T cells in the draining lymph node. In contrast, memory NR1 T cells were more activated than naïve NR1 T cells and were enriched in the genital tract. Together, our data provide insight into the differences between memory and naïve antigen-specific CD4+ T cells during C. trachomatis infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer D. Helble
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States of America
| | - Alexander O. Mann
- Department of Immunology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States of America
| | - Michael N. Starnbach
- Department of Microbiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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McQueen BE, Kiatthanapaiboon A, Fulcher ML, Lam M, Patton K, Powell E, Kollipara A, Madden V, Suchland RJ, Wyrick P, O'Connell CM, Reidel B, Kesimer M, Randell SH, Darville T, Nagarajan UM. Human Fallopian Tube Epithelial Cell Culture Model To Study Host Responses to Chlamydia trachomatis Infection. Infect Immun 2020; 88:e00105-20. [PMID: 32601108 PMCID: PMC7440757 DOI: 10.1128/iai.00105-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2020] [Accepted: 06/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis infection of the human fallopian tubes can lead to damaging inflammation and scarring, ultimately resulting in infertility. To study the human cellular responses to chlamydial infection, researchers have frequently used transformed cell lines that can have limited translational relevance. We developed a primary human fallopian tube epithelial cell model based on a method previously established for culture of primary human bronchial epithelial cells. After protease digestion and physical dissociation of excised fallopian tubes, epithelial cell precursors were expanded in growth factor-containing medium. Expanded cells were cryopreserved to generate a biobank of cells from multiple donors and cultured at an air-liquid interface. Culture conditions stimulated cellular differentiation into polarized mucin-secreting and multiciliated cells, recapitulating the architecture of human fallopian tube epithelium. The polarized and differentiated cells were infected with a clinical isolate of C. trachomatis, and inclusions containing chlamydial developmental forms were visualized by fluorescence and electron microscopy. Apical secretions from infected cells contained increased amounts of proteins associated with chlamydial growth and replication, including transferrin receptor protein 1, the amino acid transporters SLC3A2 and SLC1A5, and the T-cell chemoattractants CXCL10, CXCL11, and RANTES. Flow cytometry revealed that chlamydial infection induced cell surface expression of T-cell homing and activation proteins, including ICAM-1, VCAM-1, HLA class I and II, and interferon gamma receptor. This human fallopian tube epithelial cell culture model is an important tool with translational potential for studying cellular responses to Chlamydia and other sexually transmitted pathogens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryan E McQueen
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Amy Kiatthanapaiboon
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - M Leslie Fulcher
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Mariam Lam
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Kate Patton
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Emily Powell
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Avinash Kollipara
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Victoria Madden
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Robert J Suchland
- University of Washington, Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Priscilla Wyrick
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Catherine M O'Connell
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Boris Reidel
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Mehmet Kesimer
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Scott H Randell
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Toni Darville
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Uma M Nagarajan
- Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
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Chlamydia trachomatis Plasmid Gene Protein 3 Is Essential for the Establishment of Persistent Infection and Associated Immunopathology. mBio 2020; 11:mBio.01902-20. [PMID: 32817110 PMCID: PMC7439461 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.01902-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Chlamydia trachomatis can cause persistent infection that drives damaging inflammatory responses resulting in infertility and blindness. Little is known about chlamydial genes that cause persistence or factors that drive damaging pathology. In this work, we show that the C. trachomatis plasmid protein gene 3 (Pgp3) is the essential virulence factor for establishing persistent female genital tract infection and provide supportive evidence that Pgp3 functions similarly in a nonhuman primate trachoma model. We further show that persistent Ppg3-dependent infection drives damaging immunopathology. These results are important advances in understanding the pathophysiology of chlamydial persistence. Chlamydia trachomatis is an obligate intracellular bacterial pathogen that causes blinding trachoma and sexually transmitted disease afflicting hundreds of millions of people globally. A fundamental but poorly understood pathophysiological characteristic of chlamydial infection is the propensity to cause persistent infection that drives damaging inflammatory disease. The chlamydial plasmid is a virulence factor, but its role in the pathogenesis of persistent infection capable of driving immunopathology is unknown. Here, we show by using mouse and nonhuman primate infection models that the secreted plasmid gene protein 3 (Pgp3) is essential for establishing persistent infection. Ppg3-dependent persistent genital tract infection resulted in a severe endometritis caused by an intense infiltration of endometrial submucosal macrophages. Pgp3 released from the cytosol of lysed infected oviduct epithelial cells, not organism outer membrane-associated Pgp3, inhibited the chlamydial killing activity of antimicrobial peptides. Genetic Pgp3 rescue experiments in cathelin-related antimicrobial peptide (CRAMP)-deficient mice showed Pgp3-targeted antimicrobial peptides to subvert innate immunity as a pathogenic strategy to establish persistent infection. These findings provide important advances in understanding the role of Pgp3 in the pathogenesis of persistent chlamydial infection and associated immunopathology.
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Stone BJ, Steele KH, Men H, Srodulski SJ, Bryda EC, Fath-Goodin A. A Nonsurgical Embryo Transfer Technique for Fresh and Cultured Blastocysts in Rats. JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR LABORATORY ANIMAL SCIENCE 2020; 59:488-495. [PMID: 32787997 DOI: 10.30802/aalas-jaalas-19-000163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
The use of a nonsurgical embryo transfer technique in rodents eliminates the potential pain, distress, and health complications that may result from a surgical procedure and as such, represents a refinement in rodent assisted reproductive techniques. A nonsurgical technique has not been previously developed for use with rat embryos. Here we describe an efficient method to deliver either fresh or cultured blastocyst stage embryos to the uterine horn of pseudopregnant female rats using a rat nonsurgical embryo transfer (rNSET) device. The rNSET device is composed of a Teflon catheter and a hub that attaches to a 2 μL pipette. Oxytocin is used to dilate the cervix before the delivery of blastocysts, allowing passage of the rNSET catheter directly into the uterine horn for embryo delivery. The efficiency of recovery of pups after nonsurgical embryo transfer is similar to the efficiency after surgical embryo transfer. Furthermore, the technique is not stressful to the subjects, as demonstrated by the absence of a decrease in weight or increase in fecal corticosterone level in recipients of embryos delivered nonsurgically, without the use of anesthesia or analgesia.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Hongsheng Men
- Rat Resource and Research Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri; Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri
| | | | - Elizabeth C Bryda
- Rat Resource and Research Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri; Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri
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Rodent Infections for Chlamydia spp. Methods Mol Biol 2020. [PMID: 31385279 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-9694-0_15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register]
Abstract
Chlamydia spp. infections cause immunopathology of the male and female urogenital tracts and incidence continues to rise across the globe. Animal models offer the opportunity to study the host: pathogen relationship, with rodent models being an attractive first step in studying immune interactions, genetic knockout, as well as bacterial inhibitor and vaccine trials. Here we describe the methodology to infect both male and female rodents at various mucosal sites, with a particular focus on the reproductive tracts.
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50
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Ferber S, Gonzalez RJ, Cryer AM, von Andrian UH, Artzi N. Immunology-Guided Biomaterial Design for Mucosal Cancer Vaccines. ADVANCED MATERIALS (DEERFIELD BEACH, FLA.) 2020; 32:e1903847. [PMID: 31833592 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201903847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2019] [Revised: 09/11/2019] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Cancer of mucosal tissues is a major cause of worldwide mortality for which only palliative treatments are available for patients with late-stage disease. Engineered cancer vaccines offer a promising approach for inducing antitumor immunity. The route of vaccination plays a major role in dictating the migratory pattern of lymphocytes, and thus vaccine efficacy in mucosal tissues. Parenteral immunization, specifically subcutaneous and intramuscular, is the most common vaccination route. However, this induces marginal mucosal protection in the absence of tissue-specific imprinting signals. To circumvent this, the mucosal route can be utilized, however degradative mucosal barriers must be overcome. Hence, vaccine administration route and selection of materials able to surmount transport barriers are important considerations in mucosal cancer vaccine design. Here, an overview of mucosal immunity in the context of cancer and mucosal cancer clinical trials is provided. Key considerations are described regarding the design of biomaterial-based vaccines that will afford antitumor immune protection at mucosal surfaces, despite limited knowledge surrounding mucosal vaccination, particularly aided by biomaterials and mechanistic immune-material interactions. Finally, an outlook is given of how future biomaterial-based mucosal cancer vaccines will be shaped by new discoveries in mucosal vaccinology, tumor immunology, immuno-therapeutic screens, and material-immune system interplay.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiran Ferber
- Department of Medicine, Engineering in Medicine Division, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02139, USA
- Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Rodrigo J Gonzalez
- Department of Immunology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Alexander M Cryer
- Department of Medicine, Engineering in Medicine Division, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02139, USA
- Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Ulrich H von Andrian
- Department of Immunology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
- The Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Harvard, Boston, MA, 02139, USA
| | - Natalie Artzi
- Department of Medicine, Engineering in Medicine Division, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02139, USA
- Institute for Medical Engineering and Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
- Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, Cambridge, MA, 02139, USA
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
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