%0 Journal Article
%T CD36 deficiency attenuates experimental mycobacterial infection
%A Michael Hawkes
%A Xiaoming Li
%A Maryanne Crockett
%A Angelina Diassiti
%A Constance Finney
%A Gundula Min-Oo
%A W Conrad Liles
%A Jun Liu
%A Kevin C Kain
%J BMC Infectious Diseases
%D 2010
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1471-2334-10-299
%X Experimental Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette-Gu¨Śrin (BCG) infection in Cd36+/+ and Cd36-/- mice, and in vitro co-cultivation of M. tuberculosis, BCG and M. marinum with Cd36+/+ and Cd36-/-murine macrophages.Using an in vivo model of BCG infection in Cd36+/+ and Cd36-/- mice, we found that mycobacterial burden in liver and spleen is reduced (83% lower peak splenic colony forming units, p < 0.001), as well as the density of granulomas, and circulating tumor necrosis factor (TNF) levels in Cd36-/- animals. Intracellular growth of all three mycobacterial species was reduced in Cd36-/- relative to wild type Cd36+/+ macrophages in vitro. This difference was not attributable to alterations in mycobacterial uptake, macrophage viability, rate of macrophage apoptosis, production of reactive oxygen and/or nitrogen species, TNF or interleukin-10. Using an in vitro model designed to recapitulate cellular events implicated in mycobacterial infection and dissemination in vivo (i.e., phagocytosis of apoptotic macrophages containing mycobacteria), we demonstrated reduced recovery of viable mycobacteria within Cd36-/- macrophages.Together, these data indicate that CD36 deficiency confers resistance to mycobacterial infection. This observation is best explained by reduced intracellular survival of mycobacteria in the Cd36-/- macrophage and a role for CD36 in the cellular events involved in granuloma formation that promote early bacterial expansion and dissemination.Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M. tb) infects an estimated 2 billion people worldwide and is responsible for the most deaths annually (1.6 million/year) of any single bacterial pathogen[1]. However, only 5 to 7% of infected immunocompetent individuals develop disease during their lifetime[2], demonstrating the critical role of host factors in the control of M. tb. The histological hallmark of tuberculosis is the granuloma, composed of an inner core of activated macrophages primed for intracellular killing by surrounding
%U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2334/10/299