Tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily members 1a and 1b contribute to exacerbation of atherosclerosis by Chlamydia pneumoniae in mice

Publication date: Available online 4 October 2018Source: Microbes and InfectionAuthor(s): Mark T. Zafiratos, Jonathan T. Cottrell, Srikanth Manam, Kyle K. Henderson, Kyle H. Ramsey, Ashlesh K. MurthyAbstractThe host immune responses that mediate Chlamydia-induced chronic disease sequelae are incompletely understood. The role of TNF-α, TNF receptor 1(TNFR1), and TNF receptor 2 (TNFR2), in Chlamydia pneumoniae (CPN)-induced atherosclerosis was studied using the high-fat diet-fed male C57BL/6J mouse model. Following intranasal CPN infection, TNF-α knockout (KO), TNFR1 KO, TNFR2 KO, and TNFR 1/2 double-knockout, displayed comparable serum anti-chlamydial antibody response, splenic antigen-specific cytokine response, and serum cholesterol profiles compared to wild type (WT) animals. However, atherosclerotic pathology in each CPN-infected KO mouse group was reduced significantly compared to WT mice, suggesting that both TNFR1 and TNFR2 promote CPN-induced atherosclerosis.

Source: Microbes and Infection - October 5, 2018 Category: Infectious Diseases Source Type: research