The mechanisms underlying the survival of intracellular parasites such as mycobacteria in host macrophages remain poorly understood. In mice, mutations at the Nramp1 gene (for natural resistance-associated macrophage protein), cause susceptibility to mycobacterial infections. Nramp1 encodes an integral membrane protein that is recruited to the phagosome membrane in infected macrophages. In this study, we used microfluorescence ratio imaging of macrophages from wild-type and Nramp1 mutant mice to analyze the effect of loss of Nramp1 function on the properties of phagosomes containing inert particles or live mycobacteria. The pH of phagosomes containing live Mycobacterium bovis was significantly more acidic in Nramp1- expressing macrophages than in mutant cells (pH 5.5 ± 0.06 versus pH 6.6 ± 0.05, respectively; P <0.005). The enhanced acidification could not be accounted for by differences in proton consumption during dismutation of superoxide, phagosomal buffering power, counterion conductance, or in the rate of proton “leak”, as these were found to be comparable in wild-type and Nramp1-deficient macrophages. Rather, after ingestion of live mycobacteria, Nramp1-expressing cells exhibited increased concanamycin-sensitive H+ pumping across the phagosomal membrane. This was associated with an enhanced ability of phagosomes to fuse with vacuolar-type ATPase–containing late endosomes and/or lysosomes. This effect was restricted to live M. bovis and was not seen in phagosomes containing dead M. bovis or latex beads. These data support the notion that Nramp1 affects intracellular mycobacterial replication by modulating phagosomal pH, suggesting that Nramp1 plays a central role in this process.
Phagocytosis of bacteria by macrophages and neutrophils is an essential component of host defense against infection. The mechanism whereby the interaction of opsonized particles with Fcγ receptors triggers the engulfment of opsonized particles remains incompletely understood, although activation of tyrosine kinases has been recognized as an early step. Recent studies in other systems have demonstrated that tyrosine kinases can in turn signal the activation of small GTPases of the ras superfamily. We therefore investigated the possible role of Rho in Fc receptor–mediated phagocytosis. To this end we microinjected J774 macrophages with C3 exotoxin from Clostridium botulinum, which ADP-ribosylates and inactivates Rho. C3 exotoxin induced the retraction of filopodia, the disappearance of focal complexes, and a global decrease in the F-actin content of J774 cells. In addition, these cells exhibited increased spreading and the formation of vacuolar structures. Importantly, inactivation of Rho resulted in the complete abrogation of phagocytosis. Inhibition of Fcγ receptor–mediated phagocytosis by C3 exotoxin was confirmed in COS cells, which become phagocytic upon transfection of the FcγRIIA receptor. Rho was found to be essential for the accumulation of phosphotyrosine and of F-actin around phagocytic cups and for Fcγ receptor–mediated Ca2+ signaling. The clustering of receptors in response to opsonin, an essential step in Fcγ-induced signaling, was the earliest event shown to be inhibited by C3 exotoxin. The effect of the toxin was specific, since clustering and internalization of transferrin receptors were unaffected by microinjection of C3. These data identify a role for small GTPases in Fcγ receptor–mediated phagocytosis by leukocytes.
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