FIG 2 .

rRrgA promotes uptake of latex beads into macrophages. (A) BMDMs and THP-1 cells were challenged with latex beads covered with rRrgA (beads-rRrgA) or with rRrgC (beads-rRrgC) or with bovine serum albumin (BSA) (beads-BSA). We compared the number of coated beads that were taken up by both murine and human macrophages using BMDMs from mice as well as human PMA-differentiated THP-1 cells. The number of phagocytosed beads increased significantly when the beads were coated with rRrgA. (B) Pretreatment with mouse or human CD11b-specific antibodies significantly blocked the CD11b-dependent uptake of beads coated with rRrgA (beads-rRrgA +CD11b Ab) without influencing the number of internalized uncoated beads (beads +CD11b Ab) in BMDMs and THP-1 cells, respectively. Each treatment was done in duplicate four times. For each sample, the number of internalized beads was counted in a minimum of 10 visual fields containing at least 10 cells. Values are means plus SEM (error bars). Values that are significantly different by the Mann-Whitney U test are indicated by bars and asterisks as follows: **, P < 0.01; ***, P < 0.0002; ****, P < 0.0001.