Expression profiles of cytokines released in intestinal epithelial cells of the rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss, in response to bacterial infection

To determine whether fish intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) contribute to mucosal immunity, we established a method for isolating IECs from the rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss and examined cytokine production in these cells. Components of the intestinal epithelium were released by incubation of intestinal pieces with 1 mM dithiothreitol (DTT)/ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA). The IEC-rich fraction (purity >90%; survival rate ∼95%) was obtained by centrifugation on a 35%/40% Percoll gradient, followed by magnetic cell sorting using an anti-trout IgM antiserum. The gene expression profiles of 14 cytokines in trout IECs were investigated after culturing the cells for 6 h with or without the pathogenic bacterium Aeromonas salmonicida. Trout IECs could produce several cytokines, of which IL-1β and TNFα2 were upregulated when the cells were stimulated with live A. salmonicida. Immunohistochemical analyses with the anti-trout TNF antibody confirmed that the TNF protein was present in the IECs of trout that were intra-anally challenged with live A. salmonicida. These results show that trout IECs are an important trigger of the intestinal immune system. Further, formalin-killed A. salmonicida, conditioned medium of this bacterium, or live nonpathogenic Escherichia coli could not upregulate the expression of these cytokines. These results indicate that the production of inflammatory cytokines by IECs is caused by the adhesion of A. salmonicida, but is not due to only simple ligand–receptor interactions between the surface molecules of IECs and the bacterium or in response to bacterial secretions.