Dataset for: Protection of macrophages from intracellular pathogens by miR-182-5p mimic: a gene expression meta-analysis approach

The goals of this study were to i) define which host genes are of particular importance during the interactions between macrophages and intracellular pathogens, and ii) use this knowledge to gain fresh, experimental understanding of how macrophage activities may be manipulated during host defence. We designed an in silico method for meta-analysis of microarray gene expression data, and used this to combine data from 16 different studies of cells in the monocyte-macrophage lineage infected with 7 different pathogens. 3,498 genes were identified, which we call the Macrophage Intracellular Pathogen Response (macIPR) gene-set. As expected, the macIPR gene-set showed a strong bias towards genes previously associated with the immune response. Predicted target sites for miR-182-5p were strongly over-represented among macIPR genes, indicating an unexpected role for miR-182-regulatable genes during intracellular pathogenesis. We therefore transfected primary human alveolar macrophage-like monocyte derived macrophages from multiple different donors with synthetic miR-182-5p, and found that miR-182 overexpression i) increases proinflammatory gene induction during infection with <i>Francisella tularensis</i> LVS, ii) primes macrophages for increased autophagy, and iii) enhances macrophage control of both Gram negative <i>F. tularensis</i> LVS and Gram positive <i>Bacillus anthracis</i> ANR-1 spores. These data therefore suggest a new application for miR-182 in promoting resistance to intracellular pathogens