Cell death and infection: a double-edged sword for host and pathogen survival

Host cell death is an intrinsic immune defense mechanism in response to microbial infection. However, bacterial pathogens use many strategies to manipulate the host cell death and survival pathways to enhance their replication and survival. This manipulation is quite intricate, with pathogens often suppressing cell death to allow replication and then promoting it for dissemination. Frequently, these effects are exerted through modulation of the mitochondrial pro-death, NF-κB-dependent pro-survival, and inflammasome-dependent host cell death pathways during infection. Understanding the molecular details by which bacterial pathogens manipulate cell death pathways will provide insight into new therapeutic approaches to control infection.     

昆虫病原微生物对其寄主行为的调控作用研究进展

昆虫病原微生物是调控昆虫种群数量动态的重要因子,其作为生物防治害虫的重要手段被广泛应用。昆虫病原物往往通过调控其寄主行为来提高自身的适应性,而有些寄主行为的改变却是其应对病原物侵染的免疫反应。发烧行为被证明可抑制病原增殖并延长寄主死亡;取食行为变化影响病原物或寄主的适应性;繁殖行为主要表现在产卵力、交配行为和性信息素等方面的变化;社会性行为改变对整个社会群体的适应性或病原物传播有影响;病原物所引起的寄主防卫和群集能力下降被认为对病原传播不利;病虫趋光和趋地行为、顶峰行为和活体寄主传病行为等被认为是病原物操纵的有利于病原微生物扩散和传播的行为。明确昆虫病原物调控其寄主行为的策略和机制对于寻找到新的害虫防治方法有指导意义。     

Ubiquitylation and autophagy in the control of bacterial infections and related inflammatory responses

The ubiquitin proteasome system and autophagy constitute key signalling pathways in the host response to infection. The identification of adaptors linking the two pathways has prompted a re-examination of the latter's involvement in inflammatory reactions and the clearance of bacteria. The ubiquitin-autophagy pathway is a preferred target for effectors from pathogens that seek to exploit and evade the host defence mechanisms. A number of new players and signalling nodes have recently been identified. Here, we discuss these new insights into the host's control of bacterial infection.     

Exploitation of the endoplasmic reticulum by bacterial pathogens

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) has unique properties that are exploited by microbial pathogens. Exotoxins secreted by bacteria take advantage of the host transport pathways that deliver proteins from the Golgi to the ER. Transport to the ER is necessary for the unfolding and translocation of these toxins into the cytosol where their host targets reside. Intracellular pathogens subvert host vesicle transport to create ER-like vacuoles that support their intracellular replication. Investigations on how bacterial pathogens can use the ER during host infection are providing important details on transport pathways involving this specialized organelle.     

盘基网柄菌——研究致病机制的宿主模型

盘基网柄菌作为致病菌宿主模型的研究主要有:筛选致病菌株及相应突变菌株毒性;鉴别对致病菌易感性和抗性的突变细胞宿主;宿主细胞的有效标记、已完成的基因组计划以及宿主细胞与致病菌间信号转导通路的相互作用;这些都表明盘基网柄菌是致病机制研究的理想宿主模型。     

The Application of Genomics to Emerging Zoonotic Viral Diseases

Interspecies transmission of pathogens may result in the emergence of new infectious diseases in humans as well as in domestic and wild animals. Genomics tools such as high-throughput sequencing, mRNA expression profiling, and microarray-based analysis of single nucleotide polymorphisms are providing unprecedented ways to analyze the diversity of the genomes of emerging pathogens as well as the molecular basis of the host response to them. By comparing and contrasting the outcomes of an emerging infection with those of closely related pathogens in different but related host species, we can further delineate the various host pathways determining the outcome of zoonotic transmission and adaptation to the newly invaded species. The ultimate challenge is to link pathogen and host genomics data with biological outcomes of zoonotic transmission and to translate the integrated data into novel intervention strategies that eventually will allow the effective control of newly emerging infectious diseases.     

异体自噬的操控:病原微生物对宿主翻译后修饰的调节作用

自噬是一种广泛存在于真核细胞中的溶酶体依赖性分解代谢途径,涉及细胞分化、饥饿耐受和免疫防御等生物学功能.其中,异体自噬被定义为真核细胞特异性识别并清除胞内病原微生物的过程,是免疫细胞行使宿主防御的重要方式.然而,许多病原微生物已经"开发"了特殊的毒力因子(包括效应蛋白质和表面蛋白质等),衍生出多种逃避或劫持自噬作用的策...     

Reactive nitrogen intermediates and the pathogenesis of Salmonella and mycobacteria

Over the past decade, reactive nitrogen intermediates joined reactive oxygen intermediates as a biochemically parallel and functionally non-redundant pathway for mammalian host resistance to many microbial pathogens. The past year has brought a new appreciation that these two pathways are partially redundant, such that each can compensate in part for the absence of the other. In combination, their importance to defense of the murine host is greater than previously appreciated. In addition to direct microbicidal actions, reactive nitrogen intermediates have immunoregulatory effects relevant to the control of infection. Genes have been characterized in Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Salmonella typhimurium that may regulate the ability of pathogens to resist reactive nitrogen and oxygen intermediates produced by activated macrophages.     

How ubiquitination and autophagy participate in the regulation of the cell response to bacterial infection

Bacterial infection relies on the micro-organism's ability to orchestrate the host's cell signalling such that the immune response is not activated. Conversely, the host cell has dedicated signalling pathways for coping with intrusions by pathogens. The autophagy of foreign micro-organisms (known as xenophagy) has emerged as one of the most powerful of these pathways, although the triggering mode remains largely unknown. In the present paper, we discuss the role that certain post-translational modifications (primarily ubiquitination) may play in the activation of xenophagy and how some bacteria have evolved mechanisms to subvert or hijack this process. In particular, we address the role played by P62/SQSTM1 (sequestosome 1). Finally, we discuss how autophagy can be subverted to eliminate bacteria-induced danger signals.     

Enteropathogenic and enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli: even more subversive elements

The human pathogens enteropathogenic and enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EPEC and EHEC) share a unique mechanism of colonization that results from the concerted action of effector proteins translocated into the host cell by a type III secretion system (T3SS). EPEC and EHEC not only induce characteristic attaching and effacing (A/E) lesions, but also subvert multiple host cell signalling pathways during infection. Our understanding of the mechanisms by which A/E pathogens hijack host cell signalling has advanced dramatically in recent months with the identification of novel activities for many effectors. In addition to further characterization of established effectors (Tir, EspH and Map), new effectors have emerged as important mediators of virulence through activities such as mimicry of Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factors (Map and EspM), inhibition of apoptosis (NleH and NleD), interference with inflammatory signalling pathways (NleB, NleC, NleE and NleH) and phagocytosis (EspF, EspH and EspJ). The findings have highlighted the multifunctional nature of the effectors and their ability to participate in redundant, synergistic or antagonistic relationships, acting in a co-ordinated spatial and temporal manner on different host organelles and cellular pathways during infection.     

Manipulation of rab GTPase function by intracellular bacterial pathogens.

Intracellular bacterial pathogens have evolved highly specialized mechanisms to enter and survive within their eukaryotic hosts. In order to do this, bacterial pathogens need to avoid host cell degradation and obtain nutrients and biosynthetic precursors, as well as evade detection by the host immune system. To create an intracellular niche that is favorable for replication, some intracellular pathogens inhibit the maturation of the phagosome or exit the endocytic pathway by modifying the identity of their phagosome through the exploitation of host cell trafficking pathways. In eukaryotic cells, organelle identity is determined, in part, by the composition of active Rab GTPases on the membranes of each organelle. This review describes our current understanding of how selected bacterial pathogens regulate host trafficking pathways by the selective inclusion or retention of Rab GTPases on membranes of the vacuoles that they occupy in host cells during infection.     

Inhibition of death receptor signaling by bacterial gut pathogens

Gastrointestinal bacterial pathogens such as enteropathogenic Escherichia coli, Salmonella and Shigella control inflammatory and apoptotic signaling in human intestinal cells to establish infection, replicate and disseminate to other hosts. These pathogens manipulate host cell signaling through the translocation of virulence effector proteins directly into the host cell cytoplasm, which then target various signaling pathways. Death receptors such as TNFR1, FAS and TRAIL-R induce signaling cascades that are crucial to the clearance of pathogens, and as such are major targets for inhibition by pathogens. This review focuses on what is known about how bacterial gut pathogens inhibit death receptor signaling to suppress inflammation and prevent apoptosis.     

Application of proteomics technology for analyzing the interactions between host cells and intracellular infectious agents

Host-pathogen interactions involve protein expression changes within both the host and the pathogen. An understanding of the nature of these interactions provides insight into metabolic processes and critical regulatory events of the host cell as well as into the mechanisms of pathogenesis by infectious microorganisms. Pathogen exposure induces changes in host proteins at many functional levels including cell signaling pathways, protein degradation, cytokines and growth factor production, phagocytosis, apoptosis, and cytoskeletal rearrangement. Since proteins are responsible for the cell biological functions, pathogens have evolved to manipulate the host cell proteome to achieve optimal replication. Intracellular pathogens can also change their proteome to adapt to the host cell and escape from immune surveillance, or can incorporate cellular proteins to invade other cells. Given that the interactions of intracellular infectious agents with host cells are mainly at the protein level, proteomics is the most suitable tool for investigating these interactions. Proteomics is the systematic analysis of proteins, particularly their interactions, modifications, localization and functions, that permits the study of the association between pathogens with their host cells as well as complex interactions such as the host-vector-pathogen interplay. A review on the most relevant proteomic applications used in the study of host-pathogen interactions is presented.     

Post-translational modifications of host proteins by Legionella pneumophila: a sophisticated survival strategy

Eukaryotic proteins are tightly regulated by post-translational modifications, leading to a very subtle degree of regulation in time and space. Pathogen-mediated post-translational modifications are key strategies to modulate host factors by targeting central signaling pathways in the host cell. Legionella pneumophila, an intracellular pathogen that coevolved with protozoan hosts, encodes a large arsenal of secreted effectors conferring the ability to evade host cellular defenses and to manipulate them to promote invasion and intracellular replication. Conservation of many signaling pathways of protozoa in human macrophages confers the ability of L. pneumophila to infect humans, causing a severe pneumonia called legionnaires' disease. Most of the secreted proteins are delivered by the Dot/Icm type IV secretion system and several of these have been shown to act on different cellular pathways critical for infection. Moreover, multiple effectors target a single host function to orchestrate bacterial survival. In this review, we focus on those effectors in the repertoire of L. pneumophila proteins that target key cellular pathways by specific post-translational modifications.     

New pathways of protective and pathological host defense to mycobacteria

Recent studies have uncovered new mechanisms by which the human immune system attempts to control infection and how pathogens elude these mechanisms. Mycobacterial infections are prime examples of chronic battle fields between host and pathogens. The study of tuberculosis and related mycobacterial infectious diseases such as leprosy have greatly aided in deciphering mechanisms of immune mediated protection and pathology in humans. Here we review recent insights into the role of newly discovered T cell subsets including Th17, Tregs and nonclassically restricted T cells in adaptive immunity to mycobacteria. The role of newly discovered innate immune mechanisms in tuberculosis and leprosy along with recent results from 'unbiased' genome-wide and functional genetic approaches, are deciphering critical host pathways in human infectious disease.