LPS-induced gene expression in mouse small intestinal epithelial cells. Mus musculus

Intestinal epithelial cells express the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) receptor Toll-like receptor (TLR4) and are responsive to LPS stimulation. Following LPS exposure, epithelial cells, similar to myeloid cells such as macrophages, acquire a state of tolerance. Innate immune tolerance is characterized by a lack of expression of proinflammatory genes in response to repeated stimulation. Tolerant epithelial cells, however, exhibit sustained expression of a distinct set of genes encoding for proteins involved in metabolism and homeostasis. This study comparatively analyzes the gene expression profile 6 hours after LPS stimulation (acute response) versus 6 hours LPS followed by 90 hours incubation in the absence of LPS (tolerant response). Overall design: We used microarrays to detail the global program of gene expression under unstimulated (control), LPS stimulated (6 hours), and tolerant (96 hours) conditions. Three biological replicates each from naive cells, 6 hour LPS-stimulated cells, and 6 hour LPS-stimulated plus 90 hour LPS-free medium-incubated cells were examined and compared.