Pseudomonas aeruginosa induces apoptosis in human endothelial cells.

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Valente E, Assis MC, Alvim IM, Pereira GM, Plotkowski MC

Pseudomonas aeruginosa induces apoptosis in human endothelial cells.

Microb Pathog. 2000 Dec;29(6):345-56. doi: 10.1006/mpat.2000.0400.

PubMed ID

11095919 [ View in PubMed

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Abstract

Pseudomonas aeruginosa has been shown to enter into human endothelial cells in vitro. To ascertain the effects of bacterial intracellular (IC) infection, endothelial cells were exposed to PAK and PAO-1 strains for 1 h and treated with gentamicin in culture medium for different periods. P. aeruginosa induced a significant production of superoxide and hydrogen peroxide by endothelial cells. Concentrations of IC bacteria were reduced progressively with time and no viable PAO-1 was detected at 24 h after infection. However, IC infection led to killing of 32.2%+/-2.9 and 51.8%+/-3.5 of the cells infected with PAK and PAO-1, respectively, as determined by the MTT assay. By three criteria (transmission electron microscopy, DNA electrophoresis and reactivity with annexin V) infected cells exhibited features of apoptosis. Treatment of infected cells with anti-oxidants (catalase, tocopherol and N -acetyl-L-cysteine) significantly decreased the percentage of cell death. In contrast, treatment with aminoguanidine, an inhibitor of inducible NO synthase, increased significantly the killing of PAO-1 infected cells. Based on these results we speculate that in response to P. aeruginosa infection, endothelial cells increase the production of reactive oxygen intermediates to eliminate IC pathogens, but cells do not resist the oxidative stress and die by apoptosis.

DrugBank Data that Cites this Article

Drug Targets

Drug	Target	Kind	Organism	Pharmacological Action	Actions
Pimagedine	Nitric oxide synthase, inducible	Protein	Humans	Yes	Inhibitor Downregulator	Details