Figure 2.
Effect of nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain 1 (NOD)1 and Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR 4) activation on cytokine profiles in cultured bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cells. BAL cells from patients with and without sarcoidosis were washed twice with phosphate-buffered saline, counted, and 106 cells were cultured in media containing 1% serum. Cells were incubated with γ-D-glutamyl-meso-diaminopimelic acid (iE-DAP) (1 μg/ml) or LPS (1 ng/ml) for 16 hours or left without treatment. After 16 hours, cytokines were measured in culture supernatants via ELISA for (A) tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, (B) IL-1β, (C) IL12/IL23p40, and (D) IL-6. Data are presented as mean ± SEM of 24 patients and 10 control subjects measured in triplicate. It is important to note that there were differences within each group in terms of response to ligands and cytokine production. Using analysis of variance Mann-Whitney U test P < 0.05 was considered significant. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.001. Significant differences were found for IL-1β and IL12/IL23p40 with iE-DAP stimulation (P < 0.001) between the groups.