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Brucella species are facultative intracellular bacteria that cause brucellosis, a chronic debilitating disease significantly impacting global health and prosperity. Much remains to be learned about how Brucella spp. succeed in sabotaging immune host cells and how Brucella spp. respond to environmental challenges. Multiple types of bacteria employ the prokaryotic second messenger cyclic di-GMP (c-di-GMP) to coordinate responses to shifting environments. To determine the role of c-di-GMP in Brucella physiology and in shaping host- Brucella interactions, we utilized c-di-GMP regulatory enzyme deletion mutants. Our results show that a Δ bpdA phosphodiesterase mutant producing excess c-di-GMP displays marked attenuation in vitro and in vivo during later infections. Although c-di-GMP is known to stimulate the innate sensor STING, surprisingly, the Δ bpdA mutant induced a weaker host immune response than did wild-type Brucella or the low-c-di-GMP guanylate cyclase Δ cgsB mutant. Proteomics analysis revealed that c-di-GMP regulates several processes critical for virulence, including cell wall and biofilm formation, nutrient acquisition, and the type IV secretion system. Finally, Δ bpdA mutants exhibited altered morphology and were hypersensitive to nutrient-limiting conditions. In summary, our results indicate a vital role for c-di-GMP in allowing Brucella to successfully navigate stressful and shifting environments to establish intracellular infection.

Brucella spp. are intracellular pathogenic bacteria remarkable in their ability to escape immune surveillance and therefore inflict a state of chronic disease within the host. To enable further immune response studies, Brucella was engineered to express the well-characterized chicken ovalbumin (OVA). Surprisingly, we found that CD8 T cells bearing T cell receptors (TCR) nominally specific for the OVA peptide SIINFEKL (OT-1) reacted to parental Brucella -infected targets as well as OVA-expressing Brucella variants in cytotoxicity assays. Furthermore, splenocytes from Brucella -immunized mice produced gamma interferon (IFN-γ) and exhibited cytotoxicity in response to SIINFEKL-pulsed target cells.To determine if the SIINFEKL-reactive OT-1 TCR could be cross-reacting to Brucella peptides, we searched the Brucella proteome using an algorithm to generate a list of near-neighbor nonamer peptides that would bind to H2K b . Selecting five Brucella peptide candidates, along with controls, we verified that several of these peptides mimicked SIINFEKL, resulting in T cell activation through the “SIINFEKL-specific” TCR. Activation was dependent on peptide concentration as well as sequence. Our results underscore the complexity and ubiquity of cross-reactivity in T cell recognition. This cross-reactivity may enable microbes such as Brucella to escape immune surveillance by presenting peptides similar to those of the host and may also lead to the activation of autoreactive T cells.

Brucella spp are intracellular pathogenic bacteria remarkable in their ability to escape immune surveillance and therefore inflict a state of chronic disease within the host. To enable further immune response studies, Brucella were engineered to express the well characterized chicken ovalbumin (OVA). Surprisingly, we found that CD8 T cells bearing T cell receptors (TCR) nominally specific for the OVA peptide SIINFEKL (OT-1) reacted to parental Brucella-infected targets as well as OVA-expressing Brucella variants in cytotoxicity assays. Furthermore, splenocytes from Brucella immunized mice produced IFN-γ and exhibited cytotoxicity in response to SIINFEKL-pulsed target cells. To determine if the SIINFEKL-reactive OT-1 TCR could be cross-reacting to Brucella peptides, we searched the Brucella proteome using an algorithm to generate a list of near-neighbor nonamer peptides that would bind to H2Kb. Selecting five Brucella peptide candidates, along with controls, we verified that several of these peptides mimicked SIINFEKL resulting in T cell activation through the “SIINFEKL-specific” TCR. Activation was dependent on peptide concentration as well as sequence. Our results underscore the complexity and ubiquity of cross-reactivity in T cell recognition. This cross-reactivity may enable microbes such as Brucella to escape immune surveillance by presenting peptides similar to the host, and may also lead to the activation of autoreactive T cells.

Brucella melitensis is a well-adapted zoonotic pathogen considered a scourge of mankind since recorded history. In some cases, initial infection leads to chronic and reactivating brucellosis, incurring significant morbidity and economic loss. The mechanism by which B. melitensis subverts adaptive immunological memory is poorly understood. Previous work has shown that Brucella -specific CD8 + T cells express gamma interferon (IFN-γ) and can transition to long-lived memory cells but are not polyfunctional. In this study, chronic infection of mice with B. melitensis led to CD8 + T cell exhaustion, manifested by programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) and lymphocyte activation gene 3 (LAG-3) expression and a lack of IFN-γ production. The B. melitensis -specific CD8 + T cells that produced IFN-γ expressed less IFN-γ per cell than did CD8 + cells from uninfected mice. Both memory precursor (CD8 + LFA1 HI CD127 HI KLRG1 LO ) and long-lived memory (CD8 + CD27 HI CD127 HI KLRG1 LO ) cells were identified during chronic infection. Interestingly, after adoptive transfer, mice receiving cells from chronically infected animals were able to contain infection more rapidly than recipients of cells from acutely infected or uninfected donors, although the proportions of exhausted CD8 + T cells increased after adoptive transfer in both challenged and unchallenged recipients. CD8 + T cells of challenged recipients initially retained the stunted IFN-γ production found prior to transfer, and cells from acutely infected mice were never seen to transition to either memory subset at all time points tested, up to 30 days post-primary infection, suggesting a delay in the generation of memory. Here we have identified defects in Brucella -responsive CD8 + T cells that allow chronic persistence of infection.

With greater than 500,000 new infections per year, brucellosis is the most prevalent zoonosis worldwide. Brucella melitensis are intracellular bacteria that invade and replicate within macrophages and dendritic cells. The bacterial second messenger cyclic-di-GMP plays an important role in a variety of cellular processes such as differentiation and cell cycle, and regulates B. melitensis virulence in IRF1-/- mice. Deletion of bpdA or bpdB phosphodiesterase genes resulted in attenuated virulence whereas deletion of the cgsB guanylate cyclase gene produced a hypervirulent strain. In this study we examined host and mutant bacterial responses to explain the altered virulence. Proteomics analysis of ΔbpdA and ΔcgsB revealed differences in expression profiles of amino acid and carbohydrate transport/metabolism, cell wall biogenesis, and defense mechanisms. Scanning electron microscopy revealed smaller bacterium size and abnormal shape of the attenuated ΔbpdA strain. BALB/c mice infected with ΔbpdA had significantly less splenic colony forming units as well as 16S rRNA compared to wild-type. Bone marrow-derived macrophages infected with ΔbpdA induced the greatest increase in genes involved in the Type 1 interferon pathway compared to ΔbpdB, ΔcgsB, and wild-type. These data suggest a critical role of cyclic-di-GMP in promoting the infectious success of B. melitensis by altering bacterial phenotype and host immune responses.