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P. Borger, G. H. Koëter, J. A. B. Timmerman, E. Vellenga, J. F. C. Tomee, H. F. Kauffman, Proteases from Aspevgillus fumigatus Induce Interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-8 Production in Airway Epithelial Cell Lines by Transcriptional Mechanisms, The Journal of Infectious Diseases, Volume 180, Issue 4, October 1999, Pages 1267–1274, https://doi.org/10.1086/315027
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Abstract
Proteases secreted by Aspergillus fumigatus induce the production of cytokines by epithelial cells, including interleukin (IL)-6 and IL-8. In the present study, we focused on the mechanism(s) by which A. fumigatus-derived proteases elicit cytokine production in epithelial cells. In the epithelial cell line A549, IL-6 and IL-8 mRNA levels were enhanced by proteases as a result of transcriptional induction of the respective genes. Transcriptional induction of both genes coincided with enhanced DNA binding of nuclear factor (NF)-κB and NF-IL6, whereas activator protein-1 was unlikely to be involved. The enhanced transcriptional activity could be inhibited by the addition of chymostatin, showing serine protease dependency. Posttran-scriptional mechanisms affecting the stability of IL-6 and IL-8 mRNAs were not involved in protease-induced IL-6 and IL-8 production. These data show that after exposure to A. fumigatus-derived proteases, IL-6 and IL-8 gene expressions are up-regulated as a result of transcriptional mechanisms.