| First Author | Kulkarni MM | Year | 2015 |
| Journal | Immunology | Volume | 145 |
| Issue | 2 | Pages | 225-31 |
| PubMed ID | 25545325 | Mgi Jnum | J:246959 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5923677 | Doi | 10.1111/imm.12438 |
| Citation | Kulkarni MM, et al. (2015) Signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT-1) plays a critical role in control of Trypanosoma cruzi infection. Immunology 145(2):225-31 |
| abstractText | The control of Trypanosoma cruzi infection is related to interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) activation leading to intracellular clearance of parasites. The transcription factor signal transducer and activator of transcription 1 (STAT-1) is a key mediator of IFN-gamma intracellular signalling and knockout of this protein leads to susceptibility to several intracellular microbes. To determine the role of STAT-1 in host susceptibility to T. cruzi infection we compared the survival, parasite loads and balance of IFN-gamma and interleukin-10 (IL-10) responses between wild-type and STAT-1 knockout mice. We found that the lack of STAT-1 resulted in a more robust infection, leading to higher levels of blood and tissue parasites and markedly reduced survival. In addition, infected STAT-1 knockout mice had higher systemic levels of both IFN-gamma and IL-10, suggesting that the absence of STAT-1 leads to a disequilibrium of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Analysis of spleen cells indicates that CD4, CD8 cells generate IFN-gamma and natural killer cells express IL-13 in STAT-1 knockout animals. The production of IL-17 is particularly enhanced in the absence STAT-1 expression but did not reduce mortality. Overall these results indicate that STAT-1 is important for the control of T. cruzi infection in mice. |
