The Laboratory Core will provide tiie centralized molecular microbiology diagnostic support, bacterial and cell culture support. Cytokine measurements, and training needed for each of the Projects and other Cores. Neisseria gononrhoeae (GC), Chlamydia trachomatis (Ct). Trichomonas vaginalis (TV), will be cultijre for diagnostic PCRs DNA positive controls and DNA sequencing controls. GC will be culture from animal secretions and tissue during in-vivo experiments to measure organism numbers (loads) in gene deficient (KO) mice compared to wild type mice. GC fluorescence staining will be use to evidence infection for in-vivo experiments, and tiie morphology of infected macrophages. The core will cultijre macrophages from wild type and knockout mice, to be challenged witii GC to study tiie role of nod- like receptors (NLRs). DNA will be extracted from mice vaginal secretions and tissue, collected at different time points during infection and GC DNA will be detected by PCR using specific primer. The organism loads contained in the sample will be quantified using a new end point quantitative PCR method (a-PCR) tiiat we have previously validated to study Ct infection and transmission using human genital specimens, and for the study of Francisella tularensis (Ft) infection in the mouse model using tissue samples (spleen, liver, lungs and kidneys). This assay has an excellent correlation with quantitative Ct or Ft culture. GC loads will be quantified in in-vivo and in-vitro experiments and compared to culture. The presence of a threshold in the number of organisms in secretions or tissue that divide mice into responder vs. non-responders to bacterial antigen stimulation will be investigated. We hypothesize that the innate response is dependent on the organism load, and that uninfected mice and mice with low organism loads will have a lower response (or no respond) compared with mice having higher organism loads. We will study how GC loads: 1) are modified by changes in innate immunity respond in infected KO mice and double KO mice);2) how they conrelate with quantitative measurements of Cytokines, and 3) influence the development of sterility in infected mouse.

Public Health Relevance

Neisseria Gonorrhoeae is the causative agent of gonorrhea a sexually transmitted disease that can lead to pelvic infiammatory disease and sterility. The t)acterial infection could be asymptomatic botii in male and female and the infection could induce partial protective immunity to tiie disease. The stijdies in this proposal seek to gain a better understanding of how this intracellular pathogen adapts to colonize the genital track while evading the natural Immune defenses, and to use tiie information gamered to develop a safe and effective vaccine for gonorrhea. The Laboratory core will provide the molecular and diagnostic support for all the projects in tiiis proposal.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID)
Type
Research Program--Cooperative Agreements (U19)
Project #
5U19AI084048-02
Application #
8137840
Study Section
Special Emphasis Panel (ZAI1)
Project Start
Project End
Budget Start
2010-09-01
Budget End
2011-08-31
Support Year
2
Fiscal Year
2010
Total Cost
$258,077
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Massachusetts Medical School Worcester
Department
Type
DUNS #
603847393
City
Worcester
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
01655
Nudel, Kathleen; McClure, Ryan; Moreau, Matthew et al. (2018) Transcriptome Analysis of Neisseria gonorrhoeae during Natural Infection Reveals Differential Expression of Antibiotic Resistance Determinants between Men and Women. mSphere 3:
Wan, Chuan; Li, Yang; Le, Wen-Jing et al. (2018) Increasing Resistance to Azithromycin in Neisseria gonorrhoeae in Eastern Chinese Cities: Resistance Mechanisms and Genetic Diversity among Isolates from Nanjing. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 62:
Andrade, Warrison A; Agarwal, Sarika; Mo, Shunyan et al. (2016) Type I Interferon Induction by Neisseria gonorrhoeae: Dual Requirement of Cyclic GMP-AMP Synthase and Toll-like Receptor 4. Cell Rep 15:2438-48
Shaughnessy, Jutamas; Gulati, Sunita; Agarwal, Sarika et al. (2016) A Novel Factor H-Fc Chimeric Immunotherapeutic Molecule against Neisseria gonorrhoeae. J Immunol 196:1732-40
Su, Xiao-Hong; Wang, Bao-Xi; Le, Wen-Jing et al. (2016) Multidrug-Resistant Neisseria gonorrhoeae Isolates from Nanjing, China, Are Sensitive to Killing by a Novel DNA Gyrase Inhibitor, ETX0914 (AZD0914). Antimicrob Agents Chemother 60:621-3
Ayehunie, Seyoum; Islam, Ayesha; Cannon, Chris et al. (2015) Characterization of a Hormone-Responsive Organotypic Human Vaginal Tissue Model: Morphologic and Immunologic Effects. Reprod Sci 22:980-90
Nudel, Kathleen; Massari, Paola; Genco, Caroline A (2015) Neisseria gonorrhoeae Modulates Cell Death in Human Endocervical Epithelial Cells through Export of Exosome-Associated cIAP2. Infect Immun 83:3410-7
Gulati, Sunita; Mu, Xin; Zheng, Bo et al. (2015) Antibody to reduction modifiable protein increases the bacterial burden and the duration of gonococcal infection in a mouse model. J Infect Dis 212:311-5
Lewis, Lisa A; Gulati, Sunita; Burrowes, Elizabeth et al. (2015) ?-2,3-sialyltransferase expression level impacts the kinetics of lipooligosaccharide sialylation, complement resistance, and the ability of Neisseria gonorrhoeae to colonize the murine genital tract. MBio 6:
Lewis, Lisa A; Ram, Sanjay (2014) Meningococcal disease and the complement system. Virulence 5:98-126

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