Innate Immune Response of Oral and Foreskin Keratinocytes: Utilization of Different Signaling Pathways by Various Bacterial Species

Abstract

The innate immune response is critical for the epithelial antimicrobial barrier. The human β-defensins are small, cationic antimicrobial peptides that are made by epithelial cells and that play a role in mucosal and skin defenses. Human β-defensin 1 (hBD-1) is expressed constitutively in epithelial tissues, whereas hBD-2 and hBD-3 are expressed in response to bacterial stimuli or inflammation. Previous studies showed that hBD-2 was induced by Fusobacterium nucleatum cell wall extract without the involvement of the NF-κB transcription factors, which typically are associated with innate immunity and inflammation. The goal of this study was to characterize signaling pathways involved in hBD-2 induction in response to commensal and pathogenic bacteria. Cultured human oral and foreskin keratinocytes were treated separately with inhibitors of NF-κB, c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and p38 and then stimulated with oral commensal Streptococcus gordonii , oral pathogens Porphyromonas gingivalis and Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans , skin commensal Staphylococcus epidermidis , or skin pathogen Streptococcus pyogenes . Different bacteria induced different levels of hBD-2 and in response to the various inhibitors tested, although certain common patterns were observed for commensal- and pathogen-stimulated cells. hBD-2 induction by all bacteria tested was partially or completely blocked by inhibitors of the JNK and p38 pathways. However, in addition, hBD-2 induction by pathogenic bacteria in both oral and foreskin keratinocytes was blocked by inhibitors of NF-κB. The results indicate that commensal and pathogenic bacteria utilize different pathways in hBD-2 induction and suggest that epithelial cells from different body sites have common signaling mechanisms to distinguish between commensal and pathogenic bacteria.