Project description:The effects of stimulating intestinal epithelial cells with Th17 cytokines, IL17 and IL22, was investigated Experiment Overall Design: The human colonic epithelial cell line, T84 was grown to confluency in standard transwell plates and either mock treated, or treated with cytokines IL17 and IL22
Project description:The effects of stimulating intestinal epithelial cells with Th17 cytokines, IL17 and IL22, was investigated Keywords: dose response
Project description:Citrobacter rodentium (CR) is a murine enteric pathogen widely used to model attaching and effacing bacterial disease caused by enteropathogenic and enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli. Infection induces colonic epithelial damage and inflammation that resolves in resistant mice but results in severe disease and mortality in mice lacking interleukin-22 (IL-22). Although IL-22 promotes antimicrobial responses, epithelial barrier integrity and tissue repair during infection, the inflammatory mechanisms responsible for lethality in its absence remain poorly defined. Here, we tested whether dysregulated neutrophil responses drive disease progression in IL-22-deficient (Il22-/-) mice. Using a murine model of CR infection, we show that IL-22 deficiency is associated with progressive colonic pathology and the early emergence of a neutrophil-rich inflammatory state, characterised by markedly increased neutrophil recruitment, accumulation, and effector activity in the colonic mucosa. To determine whether excessive neutrophil responses are required for lethality, we exploited deletion of the CR type III secretion system effector EspO, a bacterial factor that promotes neutrophil recruitment. EspO deletion substantially reduced neutrophil accumulation and activity in Il22-/- mice without altering bacterial burden. Strikingly, infection with CR ΔEspO resulted in reduced colonic inflammation and 100 percent survival of infected Il22-/- mice. Together, these findings identify excessive neutrophil accumulation and activity as a key driver of lethality during CR infection in Il22-/- mice and suggest how a bacterial virulence factor amplifies neutrophil-dependent pathology within a vulnerable epithelial environment.
Project description:Interleukin-22 (IL-22) is considered indispensable for host defence against Citrobacter rodentium (CR), with 100% mortality of Il22-/- mice post infection. While IL-22 promotes epithelial barrier integrity and antimicrobial peptide production, the precise mechanism underlying Il22-/- lethality remains unclear. Here, we show that Il22-/- mice succumb to CR infection due to dehydration rather than uncontrolled bacterial burden or inability to regenerate intestinal epithelium. Proteomic analysis at 9 days post infection (dpi) revealed significant downregulation of ion transporters (Slc26a3, Aqp8, Ca2, Ca4, Slc5a8, Pept1) in Il22-/- colonic epithelial cells, suggesting an association between IL-22 deficiency and impaired fluid-electrolyte balance. Fluid therapy (FT), initiated at 5 dpi and lasted for 2 weeks, fully rescued Il22-/- mice, restoring survival without reducing bacterial burden, or affecting immune responses or epithelial integrity. Recovered Il22-/- mice exhibited epithelial regeneration and protection against reinfection, demonstrating that IL-22-independent pathways support long-term mucosal recovery. Notably, advanced AI models consistently failed to predict IL-22’s dispensability. These findings overturn the long-standing paradigm that IL-22 is indispensable for recovery from enteric infection, suggesting that alternative mechanisms can drive epithelial repair and host recovery.
Project description:To investigate the influence of Interleukin-22 (IL-22) on colonic intestinal stem cells, we assessed gene expression in these cells during homeostasis and after induction of DNA damage. IL-22 is a lymphocyte-derived cytokine that targets exclusively non-hematopoietic cells. The receptor is expressed on intestinal epithelial cells, including Lgr5+ stem cells. The colonic Lgr5+ epithelial stem cells were highly purified as DAPI-EpCam+CD45-CD24MedLgr5+. DNA damage was induced by whole body irradiation with 8 Gy and cells were isolated 24h after exposure. The following populations were analyzed: Wildtype, unirradiated (Ctrl) Il22-/-, unirradiated (Ctrl) Wildtype, 24h after 8Gy Il22-/-, 24h after 8Gy
Project description:Asthma is a chronic inflammatory airway disease characterized by airway inflammation and remodeling. The role of 15-oxo-5Z,8Z,11Z,13E-eicosatetraenoic acid (15-oxoETE), a 15-HETE metabolite catalyzed by 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH), has been relatively unexplored in asthma. In this study, we used RNA-seq to explore the effect of 15-KETE on the transcriptome of airway epithelial cells, aiming to identify its potential downstream targets and mechanisms of action.