Elsevier

Microbes and Infection

Volume 8, Issue 5, April 2006, Pages 1339-1346
Microbes and Infection

Original article
A role for dendritic cells in the dissemination of mycobacterial infection

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.micinf.2005.12.023Get rights and content
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Abstract

The ability of mycobacteria to disseminate from the initial site of infection has an important role in immune priming and in the seeding of disease in multiple organs. To study this phenomenon, we used flow cytometry to analyse the distribution of green fluorescent protein-labelled BCG amongst different populations of antigen-presenting cells in the lungs of mice following intranasal infection, and monitored appearance of live bacteria in the draining mediastinal lymph nodes. BCG predominantly infected alveolar macrophages (CD11c+/CD11b) and dendritic cells (CD11c+/CD11b+) in the lungs. The bacteria that disseminated to the lymph node were found in dendritic cells. The results are consistent with a model in which mycobacterial dissemination from the lung is initiated by the migration of infected dendritic cells to the draining lymph nodes.

Keywords

Mycobacteria
Antigen-presenting cell
Dissemination
GFP
BCG

Abbreviations

APC
antigen-presenting cell
BCG
bacille Calmette–Guerin
DC
dendritic cell
GFP
green fluorescent protein

Cited by (0)

1

Current address: Division of Molecular Immunology, La Jolla Institute of Allergy and Immunology, 10355 Science Center Drive, San Diego, CA 92121, USA.