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Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae Activates Human Eosinophils through ß-Glucan Receptors

Department of Medical Microbiology, Malmö University Hospital, Lund University, Malmö, Sweden

Address correspondence to: Kristian Riesbeck, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Medical Microbiology, Malmö University Hospital, Lund University, SE-205 02 Malmö, Sweden. E-mail: kristian.riesbeck{at}mikrobiol.mas.lu.se

Eosinophils are a characteristic component of the inflammatory response seen in several diseases, including allergic asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. After activation, eosinophil-derived products may exert proinflammatory effects and cause considerable tissue damage. In the present study, we investigated innate interactions between the respiratory tract pathogen nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) and human eosinophils. Bacterial binding to eosinophils was dependent on (1–3)-ß-D-glucan receptors, as deduced from blocking experiments using the soluble glucan derivatives laminarin and scleroglucan. In addition, expression of the ß-glucan receptor dectin-1 was shown in eosinophils by reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction. Activation of the ß-glucan receptors by bacteria elicited a time- and dose-dependent respiratory burst in eosinophils. NTHi caused increased expression of the proinflammatory chemokine interleukin-8 as measured by reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Incubation of eosinophils in the presence of NTHi for 4.5 h revealed upregulation of 245 different genes as detected by microarray. Signal transduction-related transcripts were most strongly upregulated, followed by cytokine mRNAs. Our findings suggest that NTHi can induce an innate inflammatory response in eosinophils that is mainly mediated via ß-glucan receptors. This points to possible pathophysiologic mechanisms involving innate recognition of NTHi by eosinophils during infection of the airways, thus promoting inflammation in chronic pulmonary disease.

Abbreviations: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, COPD • 2,7-dichlorofluorescein diacetate, DCF • enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, ELISA • fluorescein isothiocyanate, FITC • glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase, G3PDH • interleukin, IL • multiplicity of infection, MOI • nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae, NTHi • platelet-activating factor, PAF • peripheral blood leukocytes, PBL • phosphate-buffered saline, PBS • reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction, RT-PCR

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