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. 2013 May 18;4(7):529–538. doi: 10.1007/s13238-013-2127-9

Human pathogenic fungus Trichophyton schoenleinii activates the NLRP3 inflammasome

Hua Li 12127,22127, Shuxian Wu 22127,✉, Liming Mao 22127,✉, Guowei Lei 12127,22127, Liping Zhang 32127, Ailing Lu 22127, Liguo An 12127, Guiwen Yang 12127, Paride Abliz 32127,✉, Guangxun Meng 22127,✉
PMCID: PMC4875508  PMID: 23686720

Abstract

The fungus Trichophyton schoenleinii (T. schoenleinii) is the causative agent of Trichophytosis and Tinea favosa of the scalp in certain regions of Eurasia and Africa. Human innate immune system plays an important role in combating with various pathogens including fungi. The inflammasome is one of the most critical arms of host innate immunity, which is a protein complex controlling maturation of IL-1β. To clarify whether T. schoenleinii is able to activate the inflammasome, we analyzed human monocytic cell line THP-1 for IL-1β production upon infection with T. schoenleinii strain isolated from Tinea favosa patients, and rapid IL-1β secretion from THP-1 cells was observed. Moreover, applying competitive inhibitors and gene specific silencing with shRNA, we found that T. schoenleinii induced IL-1β secretion, ASC pyroptosome formation as well as caspase-1 activation were all dependent on NLRP3. Cathepsin B activity, ROS production and K+ efflux were required for the inflammasome activation by T. schoenleinii. Our data thus reveal that the NLRP3 inflammasome plays an important role in host defense against T. schoenleinii, and suggest that manipulating NLRP3 signaling can be a novel approach for control of diseases caused by T. schoenleinii infection.

Keywords: innate immunity, inflammasome, NLRP3, Trichophyton schoenleinii, infection

Footnotes

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Contributor Information

Paride Abliz, Email: palidaa@yahoo.com.cn.

Guangxun Meng, Email: gxmeng@sibs.ac.cn.

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