Search

Both Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4)- and MD-2-deficient mice succumb to otherwise nonfatal gram-negative bacteria inocula, demonstrating the pivotal role played by these proteins in antibacterial defense in mammals. MD-2 is a soluble endogenous ligand for TLR4 and a receptor for lipopolysaccharide (LPS). LPS-bound MD-2 transmits an activating signal onto TLR4. In this report, we show that both recombinant and endogenous soluble MD-2 bind tightly to the surface of live gram-negative bacteria. As a consequence, MD-2 enhances cellular activation, bacterial internalization, and intracellular killing, all in a TLR4-dependent manner. The enhanced internalization of MD-2-coated bacteria was not observed in macrophages expressing Lps(d), a signaling-incompetent mutant form of TLR4, suggesting that the enhanced phagocytosis observed is dependent on signal transduction. The data confirm the notion that soluble MD-2 is a genuine opsonin that enhances proinflammatory opsonophagocytosis by bridging live gram-negative bacteria to the LPS transducing complex. The presented results extend our understanding of the role of the TLR4/MD-2 signaling axis in bacterial recognition by phagocytes.

TLR2 plays a key role in the initiation of the cellular innate immune responses by a wide range of bacterial products. TLRs signaling, including TLR2 and its coreceptors TLR1 and TLR6, is mediated by a number of specific ligands. Although many of the TLR-mediated cell signaling pathways have been elucidated in the past few years, the molecular mechanisms that lead to cell activation are still poorly understood. In this study, we investigate the interaction of PorB from Neisseria meningitidis with TLR2 and describe the direct binding of a bacterial protein to TLR2 for the first time. Using labeled PorB, we demonstrate its binding to TLR2 both in its soluble form in vitro, and when it is over-expressed on the surface of human embryonic kidney 293 cells. We also show that TLR2-mediated binding of PorB is directly related to cellular activation. In addition, using 293 cells expressing the chimeric TLR2/TLR1 and TLR2/TLR6 complexes, we report the selectivity of PorB binding to the TLR2/TLR1 heterodimer, which is required for initiating signaling in transfected 293 cells and in murine B cells. Together, these data provide new evidence that TLR2 recognizes PorB through direct binding, and that PorB-induced cell activation is mediated by a TLR2/TLR1 complex.