Shiga toxin (STX) is one of the main factors inducing hemorrhagic colitis and hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS) in infections with STX-producing Escherichia coli (STEC). Approximately 62% of patients with HUS showed symptoms of encephalopathy in the 2011 Japanese outbreak of STEC infections. At that time, we reported elevated serum concentrations of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α in patients with acute encephalopathy during the HUS phase. In the current study, we investigated whether TNF-α augments the effects of STX in glial cell lines and primary glial cells. We found that TNF-α alone or STX in combination with TNF-α activates nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling and inhibits growth of glial cells. The magnitude of the NF-κB activation and the inhibition of cell growth by the STX and TNF-α combination was greater than that obtained with TNF-α alone or STX alone. Thus, this in vitro study reveals the role of TNF-α in glial cells during STEC infections.
CITATION STYLE
Leu, H., Sugimoto, N., Shimizu, M., Toma, T., Wada, T., Ohta, K., & Yachie, A. (2016). Tumor necrosis factor-α modifies the effects of Shiga toxin on glial cells. International Immunopharmacology, 38, 139–143. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.intimp.2016.05.022
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