Porphyromonas gingivalis infects gingival epithelial cells and is a chief agent causing periodontal disease in humans. In PLoS Pathogens, Takeuchi et al. identify SerB, a serine phosphatase produced by P. gingivalis, as a virulence factor that suppresses host innate immune defenses in gingival tissues. SerB acts by dephosphorylating Ser536 of the p65 subunit of the transcription factor NF-kB, which diminishes the nuclear translocation and activity of NF-kB. That SerB-mediated inhibition blunts the production of IL-8 by epithelial cells. This evasion strategy results in less recruitment of neutrophils into the gingival tissue than would otherwise combat bacterial infection. P. gingivalis that lack SerB are unable to inhibit NF-kB activity. Thus, P. gingivalis disarms host innate immune responses by inhibiting a central transcription factor responsible for mounting such responses.
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Dempsey, L. Bacterial evasion. Nat Immunol 14, 535 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/ni.2629
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/ni.2629
