Figure 5.
Imiquimod increases expression of AMPs in dendritic cells and reduces extracellular survival of Salmonella. CD11c+ cells isolated from GM-CSF-treated mice were stimulated with Imiquimod (10 μg/ml) for 24 hours. (A) Stimulated CD11c+ cells exhibited significant increases in expression of AMPs, including Defensins a1, Defensins related cryptdins (4, 6 & 20), Cathelicidin and s1008 a. (B) Media supernatant collected from the cultures of Imiquimod-treated CD11c+ cells were inoculated with Salmonella typhimurium for 1 hour. Serially diluted media were plated on agar plates for colony counts. Significantly reduced number of surviving Salmonella was observed with Imiquimod treatment. Results are representative of three individual experiments (* P < .05).