A Toll-like Receptor That Prevents Infection by Uropathogenic Bacteria

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 2004-03, Vol.303 (5663), p.1522-1526
• Main Authors: Zhang, Dekai, Zhang, Guolong, Hayden, Matthew S., Greenblatt, Matthew B., Bussey, Crystal, Flavell, Richard A., Ghosh, Sankar
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Algorithms; Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Bacteria; Bacteriology; Biological and medical sciences; Cell Line; Cell lines; Cells; Cloning, Molecular; Codon, Terminator; Colony Count, Microbial; Disease Susceptibility; Epithelial cells; Epithelial Cells - metabolism; Escherichia coli - growth & development; Escherichia coli - immunology; Escherichia coli - pathogenicity; Escherichia coli Infections - immunology; Escherichia coli Infections - microbiology; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression Profiling; Genes. Genome; Humans; Immune system; Immunity, Innate; Infections; Kidney - immunology; Kidney - metabolism; Kidney - microbiology; Kidneys; Ligands; Liver; Liver - metabolism; Macrophages - metabolism; Mice; Mice, Knockout; Microbiology; Molecular and cellular biology; Molecular biology; Molecular genetics; Molecular Sequence Data; Molecular structure; NF-kappa B - metabolism; Pathogenicity, virulence, toxins, bacteriocins, pyrogens, host-bacteria relations, miscellaneous strains; Pathogens; Physiological aspects; Polymorphism, Genetic; Receptors, Cell Surface - chemistry; Receptors, Cell Surface - genetics; Receptors, Cell Surface - metabolism; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - metabolism; RNA; Signal Transduction; Stop codon; TLR11 protein; Toll-Like Receptors; Transfection; Translation; Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha - metabolism; Urinary bladder; Urinary Bladder - immunology; Urinary Bladder - metabolism; Urinary Bladder - microbiology; Urinary Tract Infections - immunology; Urinary Tract Infections - microbiology; Urogenital diseases
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.1094351

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) recognize molecular patterns displayed by microorganisms, and their subsequent activation leads to the transcription of appropriate host-defense genes. Here we report the cloning and characterization of a member of the mammalian TLR family, TLR11, that displays a distinct pattern of expression in macrophages and liver, kidney, and bladder epithelial cells. Cells expressing TLR11 fail to respond to known TLR ligands but instead respond specifically to uropathogenic bacteria. Mice lacking TLR11 are highly susceptible to infection of the kidneys by uropathogenic bacteria, indicating a potentially important role for TLR11 in preventing infection of internal organs of the urogenital system.