Polysaccharide Capsules Equip the Human Symbiont Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron to Modulate Immune Responses to a Dominant Antigen in the Intestine.

ABSTRACT: Bacteria express multiple diverse capsular polysaccharides (CPSs) for protection against environmental and host factors, including the host immune system. Using a mouse TCR transgenic CD4⁺ T cell, BθOM, that is specific for B. thetaiotaomicron and a complete set of single CPS-expressing B. thetaiotaomicron strains, we ask whether CPSs can modify the immune responses to specific bacterial Ags. Acapsular B. thetaiotaomicron, which lacks all B. thetaiotaomicron CPSs, stimulated BθOM T cells more strongly than wild-type B. thetaiotaomicron Despite similar levels of BθOM Ag expression, many single CPS-expressing B. thetaiotaomicron strains were antistimulatory and weakly activated BθOM T cells, but a few strains were prostimulatory and strong

SUBMITTER: Hsieh S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7002182 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature