Tpl2 Promotes Innate Cell Recruitment and Effector T Cell Differentiation To Limit Citrobacter rodentium Burden and Dissemination.

Tumor progression locus 2 (Tpl2) is a serine-threonine kinase that regulates Th1 differentiation, secretion of the inflammatory cytokine gamma interferon (IFN-γ), and host defense against the intracellular pathogens , , and However, relatively little is known about the contribution of Tpl2 to Th17 differentiation and immune cell function during infection with an extracellular pathogen. The goal of this study was to determine whether Tpl2 influences the immune response generated to the extracellular bacterium , which induces a mixed Th1 and Th17 response. During peak infection with , mice experienced greater bacterial burdens with evidence of dissemination to the liver and spleen but ultimately cleared the bacteria within 3 weeks postinfection, similar to the findings for wild-type mice. mice also recruited fewer neutrophils and monocytes to the colon during peak infection, which correlated with increased bacterial burdens. In mixed bone marrow chimeras, Tpl2 was shown to play a T cell-intrinsic role in promoting both IFN-γ and interleukin-17A production during infection with However, upon CD4 T cell transfer into mice, CD4 T cells were as protective as wild-type CD4 T cells against the dissemination of bacteria and mortality. These data indicate that the enhanced bacterial burdens in mice are not caused primarily by impairments in CD4 T cell function but result from defects in innate immune cell recruitment and function.