New research reveals: Nervous system may replace antibiotics to inhibit bacterial infections

Antibiotic drugs were once the "secret weapon" for humans to fight against many diseases.

Recently, "Plos Pathogens" published an article titled UPEC kidney infection triggers neuro-immune communication leading to modulation of local renal inflammation by splenic IFNγ, revealing a new mechanism by which the nervous system senses local bacterial infection and rapidly activates the immune response.

In the traditional impression, the nervous system is only the receiver and transmitter of information, but it is not so "simple".

In order to provide effective evidence of the nervous system's "resolute action", researchers constructed a highly technical in vivo infection model and analyzed the chain reaction time of kidney infection triggering spleen infection.

Local kidney infection triggers the expression of IFNγ in the spleen

Interestingly, however, the research data suggests that the communication between organs triggered by kidney infection may not be driven by the typical inflammatory pathway of body fluids, which inspired researchers to become interested in other signaling pathways: how exactly does the spleen know so quickly? Is the kidney infected?

The researchers stained the sensory nerves in the kidney and found that after the kidney is infected by bacteria, a specific toxin "α-hemolysin" expressed by a bacteria can directly or indirectly activate neurons, leading to an increase in IFNγ in the spleen.

Neural signals are needed for communication between organs

Next, the researchers wanted to explore the exact molecular mechanism by which bacterial kidney infection activates the sensory nervous system.

Early studies have found that UPEC exotoxin alpha-hemolysin (HlyA) can be expressed in the body and will affect the early kinetics of kidney infection.

Studies have found that HlyA can indirectly trigger a systemic immune regulatory response by directly stimulating the neuroimmune axis, or by infecting renal epithelial cells to release extracellular ATP (eATP).

The role of HlyA in neuronal signal transduction during UPEC kidney infection

In the early stages of bacterial infections, the nervous system plays an indispensable role as the emissary of immune surveillance and immune regulatory response.

Reference materials:

[1]https://journals.

[2]https://medicalxpress.