Immunological effects of reduced mucosal integrity in the early life of BALB/c mice

PLoS One. 2017 May 1;12(5):e0176662. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0176662. eCollection 2017.

Abstract

Certain stimuli at the gut barrier may be necessary in early life to establish a proper balance of immune tolerance. We evaluated a compromised barrier in juvenile mice in relation to microbiota and local and systemic immunity. BALB/c mice were treated with a low dose of dextran sulfate sodium (DSS) with or without ampicillin and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) to clarify the importance of microbial antigens and interaction between microbial-associated patterns and toll-like receptors. The barrier breach resulted in increased plasma LPS, which was highest in mice treated simultaneously with ampicillin. Adding LPS in the food reduced its levels in plasma. Regulatory T cells were acutely increased in mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN) and spleen during DSS treatment regardless of simultaneous ampicillin treatment. In contrast, NK T and NK cells decreased in MLN and in spleen. This acute DSS effect was reflected in fold changes of haptoglobin and Il1a in colon, and this was also more pronounced in mice simultaneously treated with ampicillin. On day 1 post-treatment, major upregulations of Ifng, Foxp3, Il1b, Il2, and Il6 genes in colon were only observed in the mice simultaneously treated with ampicillin. A two-fold upregulation of colonic Foxp3 and Il1a was evident 25 days post-treatment. DSS skewed the microbiota in favor of Gram negative phyla. Therefore, increased permeability induced tolerogenic immunity independent of microbiota, and this was enhanced by LPS stimulation.

MeSH terms

  • Ampicillin / adverse effects
  • Ampicillin / pharmacology
  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology
  • Antigens, Bacterial / immunology
  • Antigens, Bacterial / metabolism
  • Colon / drug effects
  • Colon / immunology
  • Dextran Sulfate
  • Diet
  • Female
  • Gastrointestinal Microbiome* / drug effects
  • Gastrointestinal Microbiome* / physiology
  • Immune Tolerance*
  • Intestinal Mucosa / drug effects
  • Intestinal Mucosa / growth & development
  • Intestinal Mucosa / immunology*
  • Intestinal Mucosa / microbiology*
  • Killer Cells, Natural / drug effects
  • Killer Cells, Natural / immunology
  • Lipopolysaccharides / blood
  • Lipopolysaccharides / immunology
  • Lymph Nodes / drug effects
  • Lymph Nodes / immunology
  • Mice, Inbred BALB C
  • Models, Animal
  • Natural Killer T-Cells / drug effects
  • Natural Killer T-Cells / immunology
  • Permeability
  • Random Allocation
  • Spleen / drug effects
  • Spleen / immunology
  • T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / drug effects
  • T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / immunology
  • Toll-Like Receptor 4 / metabolism

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Antigens, Bacterial
  • Lipopolysaccharides
  • Tlr4 protein, mouse
  • Toll-Like Receptor 4
  • Ampicillin
  • Dextran Sulfate

Grants and funding

The study was sponsored by the Novo Nordisk Life Pharm In Vivo Pharmacology Centre and Gut, Grain and Greens under the Danish Innovation Fund. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.