Mucosal Immunity in Mycobacterial infections

More than a century after the identification of the tubercle bacillus and the first attempts at vaccination, tuberculosis (TB) still remains one of the world’s most serious infectious diseases. TB, caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, is typically a disease of the lung, which serves both as port of entry and as the major site of disease manifestation. The currently used vaccine, BCG, is administered parenterally and induces a systemic immune response. However, it fails to protect against pulmonary TB, thereby raising the question whether vaccination targeting the mucosal immunity in the lungs could be favourable. The respiratory mucosal surfaces represent the first line of defence against a multitude of pathogens. Secretory IgA, in mucosal secretions has an important function by blocking entrance of pathogenic organisms and preventing infections. Additionally, a role for IgA in modulation of immune responses is currently being revealed. In this work, we investigated the relevance of mucosal IgA in protection against mycobacterial infections using mice deficient for IgA and the polymeric Ig receptor, the receptor responsible for mucosal secretions of IgA. Gene-targeted mice were more susceptible to mycobacterial infections in the respiratory tract and displayed reduced production of proinflammatory, and protective, factors such as IFN-γ and TNF-α in the lungs. The mechanisms explaining the defective proinflammatory responses in the lungs of deficient mice might involve impaired signalling through Fcα receptors, or homologous receptors, which could lead to inadequate activation of pulmonary macrophages. This could subsequently result in suboptimal induction and production of cytokines and chemokines important for attraction and migration of immune cells to the site of infection. Induction of optimal adaptive immune responses to combat mycobacterial infections requires prompt innate immune activation. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are vital components of the innate branch of the immune system, ensuring early recognition of invading pathogens. Using TLR-deficient mice we demonstrated an important role for TLR2, and partly TLR4, in protection against mycobacterial infection in the respiratory tract. TLR2-deficient mice failed to induce proper proinflammatory responses at the site of infection, and macrophages derived from the knockout mice displayed impaired anti-mycobacterial activity. Experimental evidence has concluded that the immune response upon an infection can influence the outcome of succeeding infections with other pathogens. Concurrent infections might additionally interfere with responses to vaccinations and have deleterious effects. We developed an in vitro model to study the effect of a malaria infection on a successive M. tuberculosis infection. Our results demonstrate that a malaria blood-stage infection enhances the innate immune response to a subsequent M. tuberculosis infection with a Th1 prone profile. Reduced infectivity of malaria-exposed dendritic cells implies that a malaria infection could impose relative resistance to ensuing M. tuberculosis infection. However, a prolonged Th1 response may interfere with malaria parasite control. The outcome of this work emphasizes the importance of generating effective immune responses in the local mucosal environment upon respiratory mycobacterial infections. It furthermore puts new light on the immunological interaction between parasites and mycobacteria, which could have implications for future vaccine research