title: Regulation and functional impact of lipopolysaccharide induced Nod2 gene expression in the murine epididymal epithelial cell line PC1.
abstract: Epididymitis represents a serious threat to male fertility and usually develops following secondary bacterial infection of the epididymis such as urinary tract infections or sexually transmitted diseases. Surprisingly, very little is known about the innate host response triggered by bacterial infection in the male reproductive tract. In this study we investigated the regulation and function of Nod2 in epididymal epithelial cells following lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation. The immortalized epididymal epithelial cell line PC1 (proximal caput 1) constitutively expressed Toll-like receptor 4, MD-2, CD-14 but not Nod2 messenger RNA. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS; 0.5 microg/ml) rapidly induced I kappaB phosphorylation and degradation, RelA nuclear translocation and phosphorylation, which correlated with enhanced transcriptional activity (four-fold) in PC1 cells. The LPS and lipid A rapidly (1 hr) induced Nod2 messenger RNA accumulation in a dose-dependent manner. RelA and RNApolII recruitment to the Nod2 gene promoter was enhanced in LPS-stimulated cells. Molecular blockade of nuclear factor-kappaB signalling with adenovirus 5 (Ad5) I kappaB AA or adenovirus 5 double-negative (Ad5dn) IKK beta prevented LPS-induced Nod2 gene expression. Functionally, Nod2 upregulation enhanced muramyl dipeptide (MDP) -induced tumour necrosis factor messenger RNA accumulation in PC1 cells. We conclude that epididymal epithelial cells mount an innate response following LPS exposure which leads to upregulation of Nod2 and enhanced responsiveness to the microbial product MDP. The rapid Nod2 upregulation in epididymal epithelial cells is probably part of a complex innate host response aimed at protecting the male reproductive tract from the deleterious impact of bacteria.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine and Center for GI Biology and Diseases, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
authors.forename: Marcus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mühlbauer
authors.forename: Adam W
authors.initials: AW
authors.lastname: Cheely
authors.forename: Suresh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yenugu
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jobin
mesh_terms: D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine / Q000276:immunology; D000818:Animals; D002461:Cell Line, Transformed; D004822:Epididymis / Q000276:immunology*; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000276:immunology; D007113:Immunity, Innate; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000378:metabolism; D053473:Nod2 Signaling Adaptor Protein / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000276:immunology; D051197:Toll-Like Receptor 4 / Q000378:metabolism; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000096:biosynthesis; D015854:Up-Regulation / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D016328:NF-kappa B; D053473:Nod2 Signaling Adaptor Protein; C495945:Nod2 protein, mouse; D012333:RNA, Messenger; C493487:Tlr4 protein, mouse; D051197:Toll-Like Receptor 4; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D000119:Acetylmuramyl-Alanyl-Isoglutamine