After injury or infection, neutrophils rapidly migrate from the circulation into tissues by means of an orderly progression of adhesion receptor engagements. Neutrophils have been previously ...considered to use selectins exclusively to roll on vessels before an adhesion step mediated by the β2 integrins, lymphocyte function–associated antigen (LFA)-1, and Mac-1. Here we use LFA-1−/− mice, function blocking monoclonal antibodies, and intravital microscopy to investigate the roles of LFA-1, Mac-1, and α4 integrins in neutrophil recruitment in vivo. For the first time, we show that LFA-1 makes a contribution to neutrophil rolling by stabilizing the transient attachment or tethering phase of rolling. In contrast, Mac-1 does not appear to be important for either rolling or firm adhesion, but instead contributes to emigration from the vessel. Blocking Mac-1 in the presence of LFA-1 significantly reduces emigration, suggesting cooperation between these two integrins. Low levels of α4β1 integrin can be detected on neutrophils from LFA-1+/+ and −/− mice. These cells make use of α4β1 during the rolling phase, particularly in the absence of LFA-1. Thus LFA-1 and α4β1, together with the selectins, are involved in the rolling phase of neutrophil recruitment, and, in turn, affect the later stages of the transmigration event.
S100 proteins, a multigenic family of calcium-binding proteins, have been linked to human pathologies in recent years. Deregulated expression of S100 proteins, including S100A8 and S100A9, was ...reported in association with neoplastic disorders. In a previous study, we identified enhanced expression of S100A8 and S100A9 in human prostate cancer. To investigate potential functional implications of S100A8 and S100A9 in prostate cancer, we examined the influence of over-expressed and of purified recombinant S100A8 and S100A9 proteins in different prostate epithelial cell lines. S100A8 and S100A9 were secreted by prostate cancer cells, a finding which prompted us to analyze a possible function as extracellular ligands. S100A8/A9 induced the activation of NF-κB and an increased phosphorylation of p38 and p44/42 MAP kinases. In addition, extracellular S100A8/A9 stimulated migration of benign prostatic cells in vitro. Furthermore, in immunofluorescence experiments, we found a strong speckled co-localization of intracellular S100A8/A9 with RAGE after stimulating cells with recombinant S100A8/A9 protein or by increasing cytosolic Ca
2+ levels. In summary, our findings show that S100A8 and S100A9 are linked to the activation of important features of prostate cancer cells.
Neutrophil migration from the blood to inflammatory sites follows a cascade of events, in which adhesion to endothelial cells and extracellular matrix proteins is essential. S100A8, S100A9, and ...S100A12 are small abundant proteins found in human neutrophil cytosol and presumed to be involved in leukocyte migration. Here we investigated the S100 proteins’ activities in neutrophil tissue migration by evaluating their effects on neutrophil adhesion to certain extracellular matrix proteins. S100A9 induced adhesion only to fibronectin and was the only S100 protein that stimulated neutrophil adhesion to this extracellular matrix protein. Experiments with blocking antibodies revealed that neither β1 nor β3 integrins were strongly involved in neutrophil adhesion to fibronectin, contrary to what the literature predicted. In contrast, neutrophil adhesion to fibronectin was completely inhibited by anti-β2 integrins, suggesting that S100A9-induced specific activation of β2 integrin is essential to neutrophil adhesion.
Neutrophilic lung inflammation is an essential component of host defense against diverse eukaryotic and prokaryotic pathogens, but in chronic inflammatory lung diseases, such as chronic obstructive ...lung disease (COPD), severe asthma, cystic fibrosis, and bronchiolitis, it may damage the host. Glucocorticosteroids are widely used in these conditions and in their infectious exacerbations; however, the clinical efficacy of steroids is disputed. In this study, we used a proteomic approach to identify molecules contributing to neutrophilic inflammation induced by transnasal administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) that were also resistant to the potent glucocorticosteroid dexamethasone (Dex). We confirmed that Dex was biologically active at both the transcript (suppression of GM-CSF and TNFα transcripts) and protein levels (induction of lipocortin) and used 2D-PAGE/MALDI-TOF to generate global expression profiles, identifying six LPS-induced proteins that were Dex resistant. Of these, S100A8, a candidate neutrophil chemotactic factor, was profiled in detail. Steroid refractory S100A8 expression was highly abundant, transcriptionally regulated, secreted into lung lavage fluid and immunohistochemically localized to tissue infiltrating neutrophils. However, in marked contrast to other vascular beds, neutralizing antibodies to S100A8 had only a weak anti-neutrophil recruitment effect and antibodies against the related S100A9 were ineffective. These data highlight the need for extensive in vivo profiling of proteomically identified candidate molecules and demonstrates that S100A8, despite its abundance, resistance to steroids and known chemotactic activity, is unlikely to be an important determinant of LPS-induced neutrophilic lung inflammation in vivo. Keywords: neutrophils • chemotaxis • inflammation • lung
Many chemicals of environmental concern are known to alter the immune system and are considered toxic molecules because they affect immune cell functions. Inflammation related to environmental ...chemical exposure, however, is poorly documented, except that from air pollutants. In this study, we found that the organochlorine insecticide dieldrin could not alter the ability of human neutrophils to phagocytose opsonized sheep red blood cells at nonnecrotic concentrations (0.1, 1, 10, and 50 μM). However, dieldrin was found to increase human neutrophil superoxide production, RNA synthesis, and proinflammatory cytokine interleukin‐8 production. The normal apoptotic rate of neutrophils evaluated by both cytology and flow cytometry (CD‐16 staining) was not altered by dieldrin treatments, and this was correlated with its inability to inhibit spreading of neutrophils onto glass. Using the murine air pouch model, we found that dieldrin induces a neutrophilic inflammation. Taken together, these results demonstrated that dieldrin is a proinflammatory contaminant. To our knowledge, this is the first report establishing that dieldrin is a contaminant exhibiting proinflammatory properties. In addition, it is the first time that the murine air pouch model has been successfully used to confirm that a chemical of environmental concern can induce an inflammatory response in vivo.
Investigation of hyperalgesia at the spinal transcriptome level indicated that carrageenan-induced inflammation of rat hind paws leads to a rapid but sustained increase in S100A8 and S100A9 ...expression, two genes implicated in the pathology of numerous inflammatory diseases including rheumatoid arthritis and gout. In situ hybridization revealed that the elevation occurred in neutrophils that migrate to the spinal cord vasculature during peripheral inflammation, not in spinal neurons or glial cells. Immunohistochemical analysis suggests, but does not prove, that these neutrophils abundantly release S100A8 and S100A9. Consistent with this, we detected an increase in ICAM and VCAM, both indicators of endothelial activation, a known trigger for secretion of S100A8 and S100A9. Migration of S100A8- and S100A9-expressing neutrophils to spinal cord is selective, since MCP-1- and CD68-expressing leukocytes do not increase in spinal cord vasculature during hind paw inflammation. Examination of many neutrophil granule mediators in spinal cord indicated that they are not regulated to the same degree as S100A8 and S100A9. Neutrophil migration also occurs in the vasculature of brain and pituitary gland during peripheral inflammation. Together, these findings suggest an interaction between a subpopulation of leukocytes and the CNS during peripheral tissue inflammation, as implied by an apparent release and possible diffusion of S100A8 and S100A9 through the endothelial blood–brain barrier. Although the present findings do not establish the neurophysiological or behavioral relevance of these observations to nociceptive processing, the data raise the possibility that selective populations of leukocytes may communicate the presence of disease or tissue damage from the periphery to cells in the central nervous system.
Neutrophil migration from the blood to inflammatory sites follows a cascade of events, in which adhesion to endothelial cells and extracellular matrix proteins is essential. S100A8, S100A9, and ...S100A12 are small abundant proteins found in human neutrophil cytosol and presumed to be involved in leukocyte migration. Here we investigated the S100 proteins' activities in neutrophil tissue migration by evaluating their effects on neutrophil adhesion to certain extracellular matrix proteins. S100A9 induced adhesion only to fibronectin and was the only S100 protein that stimulated neutrophil adhesion to this extracellular matrix protein. Experiments with blocking antibodies revealed that neither beta 1 nor beta 3 integrins were strongly involved in neutrophil adhesion to fibronectin, contrary to what the literature predicted. In contrast, neutrophil adhesion to fibronectin was completely inhibited by anti- beta 2 integrins, suggesting that S100A9-induced specific activation of beta 2 integrin is essential to neutrophil adhesion.
S100A8, S100A9, and S100A12, collectively known as myeloid-related proteins (MRPs), are highly expressed by the myeloid cell lineage and are found in the extracellular milieu during infections and ...inflammatory conditions. Recent data showed high levels of MRPs in the serum of HIV type 1 (HIV-1)-infected patients which correlated with disease progression and low CD4(+) counts. Therefore, we set out to investigate the effect of MRPs on HIV-1 replication. We observed a 4- to 5-fold induction of virus production in J1.1, a human T lymphoid cell line latently infected with HIV-1, following treatment with MRPs. Using luciferase-based reporter gene assays, we demonstrated that MRPs induce a dose- and time-dependent activation of the HIV-1 long terminal repeat promoter region that could be blocked by specific anti-MRP polyclonal Abs and by physical denaturation of these proteins. The MRP-mediated induction was acting through the HIV-1 enhancer sequence and was dependent upon NF-kappaB activity. These latter results were also confirmed by EMSA experiments conducted in Jurkat cells and freshly isolated PBMCs. In conclusion, we demonstrate that MRPs induce HIV-1 transcriptional activity and viral replication in infected CD4(+) T-lymphocytes at concentrations similar to those found in the serum of HIV-1-infected patients.
Recognition of viral dsRNA by endosomal toll-like receptor 3 (TLR3) activates innate immune response during virus infection. Trafficking of TLR3 to the endo-lysosomal (EL) compartment arising from ...fusion of late endosome (LE) with lysosome is required for recognition and detection of Pathogen Associated Molecular Patterns (PAMP). PAMP detection results in activation of TLR3-dependent signaling cascade. Existing knowledge about the mechanism(s) and cellular factor(s) governing TLR3 trafficking is limited. In the current study we have identified intracellular S100A9 protein as a critical regulator of TLR3 trafficking. S100A9 was required for maturation of TLR3 containing early endosome (EE) into LE, the compartment that fuses with lysosome to form EL compartment. Drastic reduction in cytokine production was observed in S100A9 knockout (KO) primary macrophages following RNA virus infection and treatment of cells with polyIC (a dsRNA mimetic that acts as a TLR3 agonist). Mechanistic studies revealed co-localization and interaction of S100A9 with TLR3 following polyIC treatment. S100A9-TLR3 interaction was critical for maturation of TLR3 containing EE into LE since TLR3 could not be detected in the LE of polyIC treated S100A9 KO macrophages. Subsequently, TLR3 failed to co-localize with its agonist (i.e. biotin-labeled polyIC) in S100A9 deficient macrophages. The
in vivo
physiological role of S100A9 was evident from loss of cytokine production in polyIC treated S100A9 KO mice. Thus, we have identified intracellular S100A9 as a regulator of TLR3 signaling and demonstrated that S100A9 functions during pre-TLR3 activation stages by facilitating maturation of TLR3 containing EE into LE.