Xu Rui, Lin Jing, Zhao Gui-Qiu, Li Cui, Che Cheng-Ye, Xu Qiang, Liu Min
Department of Ophthalmology, the Affiliated Hospital of Qingdao University, Qingdao 266003, Shandong Province, China.
Int J Ophthalmol. 2018 May 18;11(5):712-718. doi: 10.18240/ijo.2018.05.02. eCollection 2018.
To elucidate the effect of rapamycin on regulating the production of interleukin (IL)-1β in ()-induced keratitis and to verify whether the expression of IL-1β in keratitis is associated with the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR)/Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling pathway.
Fungal keratitis mouse models of susceptible C57BL/6 mice were established using . The mice were subsequently treated with rapamycin. The protein levels of p-mTOR, TLR4, and IL-1β in normal and infected corneal tissue were measured by Western blot. The TLR4 and IL-1β mRNA levels were determined by real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
In C57BL/6 mice, rapamycin treatment decreased the clinical scores and production of the pro-inflammatory cytokine, IL-1β. The expression of TLR4, stimulated by , was reduced as well when the mTOR signaling pathway was suppressed by rapamycin.
Rapamycin is beneficial for the outcome of fungal keratitis and has an inhibitory effect expression of the inflammatory cytokine IL-1β. The inhibitory effect on IL-1β expression can be associated with the mTOR/TLR4 signaling pathway in infection in mice.
阐明雷帕霉素对调节烟曲霉素诱导的角膜炎中白细胞介素（IL）-1β产生的影响，并验证角膜炎中IL-1β的表达是否与雷帕霉素哺乳动物靶点（mTOR）/Toll样受体4（TLR4）信号通路相关。
使用烟曲霉素建立易感C57BL/6小鼠的真菌性角膜炎小鼠模型。随后用雷帕霉素对小鼠进行治疗。通过蛋白质免疫印迹法检测正常和感染角膜组织中p-mTOR、TLR4和IL-1β的蛋白水平。通过实时聚合酶链反应（PCR）测定TLR4和IL-1β的mRNA水平。
在C57BL/6小鼠中，雷帕霉素治疗降低了临床评分和促炎细胞因子IL-1β的产生。当雷帕霉素抑制mTOR信号通路时，烟曲霉素刺激的TLR4表达也降低。
雷帕霉素对真菌性角膜炎的转归有益，且对炎性细胞因子IL-1β的表达有抑制作用。对IL-1β表达的抑制作用可能与小鼠烟曲霉素感染中的mTOR/TLR4信号通路有关。
