PM2.5 impairs macrophage functions to exacerbate pneumococcus-induced pulmonary pathogenesis

Editorial: Molecular Pathogenesis of Pneumococcus

Pathogenesis of Pneumococcus Infections in Mice

Unprepared mice given intranasal inoculations of certain strains of pneumococci develop pneumonia. The proportion of inoculated mice which will show the pneumonia at autopsy is dependent upon the strain and type of organism and the breed of mice used. It has been shown that, with the technique employed, the pneumococci reach the lower respiratory tract and alveoli almost immediately; moreover, ...

The pneumococcus: epidemiology, microbiology, and pathogenesis.

The pneumococcus is the classic Gram-positive extracellular pathogen. The medical burden of diseases it causes is amongst the greatest in the world. Intense study for more than 100 years has yielded an understanding of fundamental aspects of its physiology, pathogenesis, and immunity. Efforts to control infection have led to the deployment of polysaccharide vaccines and an understanding of anti...

Macrophage CD74 contributes to MIF-induced pulmonary inflammation

BACKGROUND MIF is a critical mediator of the host defense, and is involved in both acute and chronic responses in the lung. Neutralization of MIF reduces neutrophil accumulation into the lung in animal models. We hypothesized that MIF, in the alveolar space, promotes neutrophil accumulation via activation of the CD74 receptor on macrophages. METHODS To determine whether macrophage CD74 surfac...

Macrophage deletion of p38alpha partially impairs lipopolysaccharide-induced cellular activation.

The activation of p38alpha, a MAPK family member, is associated with macrophage activation by microbial pattern molecules, such as LPS. The requirement of p38alpha in inflammatory responses has been shown in a number of studies using chemical inhibitors, though the inhibitors also inhibit p38beta and perhaps some other enzymes. In this study, we used conditional knockout of p38alpha in macropha...