A role for the Ankyrin repeat containing protein Ankrd17 in Nod1- and Nod2-mediated inflammatory responses.

Innate immune responses induced by the pattern-recognition receptors Nod1 and Nod2 play pivotal roles to combat infection and to instruct adaptive immunity. Here we identify Ankrd17 as a novel binding partner of Nod2 and show that its N-terminal domain mediates Nod2 binding. Knock-down and overexpression analysis revealed that Ankrd17 is functionally involved in Nod2- and Nod1-mediated responses in human myeloid and epithelial cells. In HeLa cells Ankrd17 contributed to pro-inflammatory responses induced by Shigella flexneri, however not to type I interferon responses induced by Sendai virus. In conclusion, this reveals a novel function for Ankrd17 in anti-bacterial innate immune pathways.