Figure 6.

Inhibition of caspase-1-dependent inflammasome activation results in more severe disease progression during CDI. Mice were challenged with C. difficile VPI 10463 alone or together with an intraperitoneal injection of Ac-YVAD-cmk (12.5 μM), which is an irreversible caspase-1 inhibitor, for 2 days. Disease progression, including changes in (A) body weight, (B) colon length, and (C) cecum weight were monitored after 2 days of infection. (D) Serum amyloid A, which is an indicator of colitis, was measured by ELISA. The bacterial load of C. difficile in the feces (E) and cecum contents (F) were determined by plating on selective CCFA agar plates. (G) IL-1β production in the colon tissue was detected by ELISA. CXCL1 (H) and CXCL2 (I) mRNA levels in the colon tissue were analyzed by real-time PCR. Values represent the mean ± SEM (N = 5/group). ^*p < 0.05; ^**p < 0.01, ^***p < 0.001. (J) Gr-1 positive cells in the colon tissue. Scale bar, 40 μM.