| Project/Area Number |
25860818
|
|---|
| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
|
| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
|---|
| Research Field |
Collagenous pathology/Allergology
|
|---|
| Research Institution | Juntendo University |
|---|
Principal Investigator |
|
|---|
| Project Period (FY) |
2013-04-01 – 2015-03-31
|
| Project Status |
Completed (Fiscal Year 2014)
|
| Budget Amount *help |
¥4,160,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥960,000)
Fiscal Year 2014: ¥1,950,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥450,000)
Fiscal Year 2013: ¥2,210,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥510,000)
|
|---|
| Keywords | Aire / commensal bacteria / thymic epithelial cell / peptidoglycan / superantigen / 胸腺 / 腸内細菌 / ペプチドグリカン / スーパー抗原 / Nod1 / 樹状細胞 / migration / Treg |
|---|
| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Commensal bacteria are reported to function as an environmental factor to regulate intestinal inflammation and immune responses. However, it remains largely unknown whether such bacterial function exerts any effect on other immune organs distant from the intestine. In this study, the influence of commensal bacteria in the thymus was investigated using germ-free mice and Nod1-deficient mice lacking an intracellular recognition receptor for certain bacterial components. Interestingly, autoimmune regulator (Aire) expression in thymic epithelial cells (TECs) was decreased in comparison to specific pathogen-free mice and Nod1 wild-type mice, respectively. The in vitro analysis using a fetal thymus organ culture system showed that Aire expression in TECs was increased in the presence of a bacterial component or a bacterial product. These results suggest that through their products, commensal bacteria have potential to give some effect on the epithelial cells of thymus.
|
