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F Stelter

Publications and source records attributed to F Stelter.

25 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Both membrane-bound and soluble forms of CD14 bind to gram-negative bacteria.

Tissue macrophages and their precursors-the blood monocytes-respond rapidly to a bacterial infection with the release of inflammatory mediators. These mediators are involved in the recruitment of phagocytic cells, principally neutrophils, from the blood to the site of infection. To initiate this process macrophages and monocytes must be able to detect the presence of bacteria in a reliable, but nevertheless nonspecific, fashion. It is thought that this is achieved by means of receptors on the cell surface which recognize structures common to many different bacteria. One candidate for such a "pattern recognition element" is the cell surface glycoprotein CD14. CD14 has been shown to bind components of the Gram-positive cell wall and it also binds soluble lipopolysaccharide released from Gram-negative bacteria. In both cases the interaction with CD14 leads to an activation of the cell. Here we show that human peripheral blood monocytes can, in addition, bind intact Gram-negative bacteria in the presence of serum and this process involves CD14. When CD14 expression is induced on the myelomonocytic cell line U937 by treatment with vitamin D3 the cells concomittently acquire the capacity to bind bacteria. Furthermore, a non-monocytic cell line which does not bind bacteria acquires the capacity to do so when transfected with either the human or mouse CD14 gene. This binding can be inhibited by blocking the CD14 receptor with anti-CD14 antibody or by blocking the ligand on the bacteria with soluble CD14. Finally we demonstrate binding of sCD14 to Escherichia coli. We conclude that in the presence of serum both membrane-bound and soluble forms of CD14 can bind to Gram-negative bacteria. This suggests that CD14 may play a role in the detection and elimination of intact bacteria in vivo.

Animals↗

Endotoxin activates human vascular smooth muscle cells despite lack of expression of CD14 mRNA or endogenous membrane CD14.

During infection or inflammation, cells of the blood vessel wall, such as endothelial cells (EC) and smooth muscle cells (SMC), contribute to the regulation of the immune response by production of cytokines or expression of adhesion molecules. Little is known about the mechanism(s) involved in the stimulation of vascular cells by endotoxin (lipopolysaccharide [LPS]). As reported previously, LPS antagonists reduce LPS-induced cytokine production or adhesion in vitro specifically, suggesting a specific LPS recognition mechanism. We thus investigated the role of CD14 for stimulation of vascular SMC by LPS. Complement-fixing antibodies directed against CD14 (LeuM3, RoMo I, or Mo2) lysed monocytes but failed to mediate lysis of EC or SMC, indicating the lack of endogenous membrane CD14 in vascular cells. In addition, we did not detect expression of CD14 protein on EC and SMC in cell sorting analysis or cell immunoassay experiments. These observations are in line with our finding that a CD14 probe did not hybridize with mRNA or EC or SMC in Northern (RNA) blot experiments, although it hybridized well with monocyte-derived mRNA. We obtained the same results with the much more sensitive reverse transcription-PCR. Since the vascular SMC did not express endogenous CD14, we investigated the role of human serum-derived soluble CD14 (sCD14) for activation of SMC by LPS. In medium containing human serum, anti-CD14 antibodies inhibited activation of SMC by LPS. In contrast, the same antibodies did not inhibit activation of cells cultured in medium containing fetal calf serum. SMC cultured in sCD14-depleted medium responded 1,000-fold less to LPS than cells cultured in presence of sCD14. Reconstitution of sCD14-depleted serum or supplementation of serum-free medium with recombinant CD14 restored the capacity of the cells to respond to LPS. These results show that specific activation of vascular SMC by LPS does not involve binding to endogenous membrane CD14, but that the activation of vascular SMC by LPS is mediated to a great extent by serum-derived sCD14.

Antigens, CD↗

The novel subset of CD14+/CD16+ blood monocytes exhibits features of tissue macrophages.

The CD14+/CD16+ cells account for about 10% of all blood monocytes. They are characterized by a low level expression of the CD14 molecule and a high level expression of the CD16 (Fc gamma R III) molecule. Polymerase chain reaction analysis of mRNA prevalence in CD14+/CD16+ cells (compared to the regular CD14++ blood monocytes) demonstrates low levels of CD14 transcripts and high levels of CD16 transcripts, suggestive of a transcriptional control for both of these proteins. Analysis of additional cell surface molecules in three-color immunofluorescence reveals that CD14+/CD16+ cells express the Fc gamma R II in all, and Fc gamma R I and ICAM-1 in some donors. Furthermore, class II antigens are expressed at fourfold higher levels, while both, CD11b and CD33 cell surface proteins, are decreased by a factor of two. Transcript levels were reduced in CD14+/CD16+ cells for all three cell surface molecules. Since these phenotypic markers of the CD14+/CD16+ blood monocytes are reminiscent of tissue macrophages, we performed a comparative analysis with alveolar macrophages (AM). These cells are similar to the CD14+/CD16+ monocytes in that they show low levels of CD14 and strong expression of CD16. Furthermore, similar to the CD14+/CD16+ cells, the AM also exhibit higher levels of class II and lower levels of CD11b and CD33 when compared to the regular CD14++ blood monocytes. In vitro induction of maturation of blood monocytes by 5 day culture of peripheral blood mononuclear cells in 10% human serum will result in decreased CD14 and increased CD16 cell surface expression on the monocyte derived macrophages. At the same time, these cells acquire increased levels of class II and decreased levels of CD11b and CD33. Taken together, these data show that CD14+/CD16+ monocytes, while still in circulation, have acquired features in common with mature tissue macrophages.

Antigens, CD↗

Complement component 3 (C3) genetics and diabetes mellitus.

Complement component 3 (C3) phenotype and allele frequencies were defined in 312 patients with type-1 diabetes (insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus), 256 patients with type-2 diabetes (non-insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus), 114 apparently non-diabetic first-degree relatives of type-1 diabetics, in 10 families (29 members) with a familial history of type-1 or type-2 diabetes, in 181 patients with coronary heart disease and 255 subjects with arterial hypertension. 512 blood donors served as controls. All persons investigated were Europeans. There is no evidence that genes linked to C3 influence susceptibility to type-1 and type-2 diabetes and to their late complications as well as to atherosclerosis and essential hypertension. The distribution of apolipoprotein E phenotypes in patients and controls was likewise not significantly different. The combined evaluation of data from linked genes (C3 and apo E) could not improve the results. Deductions of C3 as a genetic disease marker have to be interpreted with caution.

Alleles↗

Complement component 3 (C 3) and diabetes mellitus.

Complement factor 3 (C3) phenotype and allele frequencies were defined in 312 patients with Type 1 diabetes (IDDM), 256 patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus (NIDDM), 114 apparently healthy first-degree relatives of Type 1 diabetics, in 10 families (29 members) with a familial history of Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, and 512 controls (blood donors). All persons investigated were Europeans. There is no evidence to suggest that genes linked to C3 influence susceptibility to Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes and to their late complications. C3 levels in blood plasma were found to be slightly elevated in both types of diabetes. But the C3 concentrations varied considerably within the groups. C3 split products were demonstrable in a high percentage in the blood plasma of freshly manifested Type 1 diabetic persons as well as in Type 1 diabetics with a duration of the disease of 1 to 3 years. C3 proteolysis could also be found in plasma of Type 2 diabetics (26%).

Adolescent↗

Human monocytes lacking the membrane-bound form of the bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) receptor CD14 can mount an LPS-induced oxidative burst response mediated by a soluble form of CD14.

Monocytes and macrophages express a glycosyl phosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored lipopolysaccharide (LPS) receptor on the cell surface which enables them to detect minute amounts of LPS released from Gram-negative bacteria. A soluble form of CD14 is also found free in serum, though its physiological function is unknown. the interaction of LPS with CD14 on the monocyte surface leads to an activation of the cells which is manifested in the sudden release of reactive oxygen species, a process referred to as an oxidative burst. In patients suffering from the condition known as paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria (PNH), the synthesis of GPI anchors is blocked in haematopoietic cells which are therefore unable to express GPI-linked proteins on their surface. In severe cases, over 90% of monocytes lack membrane-bound CD14, though normal levels of the soluble form of the receptor-sCD14-are found in the serum. Despite this lack of membrane-bound CD14, monocytes from PNH patients can respond to low concentrations of LPS. Here we show that the LPS-induced oxidative burst of these PNH monocytes requires a component present in serum. The serum-dependent activation can be inhibited by monoclonal antibodies to CD14, can be removed from the serum by passage over a matrix to which an anti-CD14 antibody has been bound, and the depleted serum can be reconstituted by the addition of either purified natural or purified recombinant soluble CD14. We conclude that an LPS-dependent oxidative burst in PNH monocytes can be mediated by soluble CD14.

Acute-Phase Proteins↗