Comparison of human monocyte derived macrophages and THP1-like macrophages as in vitro models for M. tuberculosis infection
Date
2019
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Elsevier
Abstract
Macrophages are the preferential cell types to study various aspects of mycobacterial infection. Commonly used
infection models for in-vitro studies are primary macrophages such as human monocyte derived macrophages
(hMDMs) and macrophage like cell lines (THP-1). It is not clear if commercially available THP-1 cells can be
used as hMDMs alternative for in-vitro M.tb infection experiments. We conducted a detailed investigation of the
hMDM and THP-1 response to mycobacterial infection on a comparative basis and assess the most crucial aspects
of infection which are most commonly studied. We assessed mycobacterial uptake and intracellular growth over
time of a pathogenic drug-resistant and drug-susceptible M.tb strains (R179 and H37Rv) through colony forming
units (CFUs). Both strains depicted similar uptake and intracellular growth in hMDMs and THP-1 macrophages
over time (R179, p=0.954) (H37Rv, p=0.922). Cytotoxicity assays revealed a consistent viability up to day 16
post-infection across the strains in both THP-1 and hMDMs (R179, p=0.271) (H37Rv, p=0.068). Interestingly,
both cell lines showed similar mycobacterial uptake and cellular viability in both susceptible as well as resistant
M.tb strains. Cytokine/chemokine mRNA analysis through qPCR found no difference between cell types. Further,
cytokine secretion measured through Luminex revealed no difference across the strains. Also, cytokine secretion
analysis showed no difference in both cell lines across strains. In conclusion, our study shows that THP-1 and
hMDMs bacterial uptake, viability and host response to drug-susceptible and drug-resistant mycobacterial infections
are similar. Therefore, present study demonstrate that THP-1 cells are suitable substitutes for hMDMs for
in-vitro M.tb infection experiments.
Description
CITATION: Madhvi, A., et al. 2019. Comparison of human monocyte derived macrophages and THP1-like macrophages as in vitro models for M. tuberculosis infection. Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, 67:101355, doi:10.1016/j.cimid.2019.101355.
The original publication is available at https://www.sciencedirect.com
The original publication is available at https://www.sciencedirect.com
Keywords
Macrophages, Mycobacterial diseases, Host-parasite relationships, Macrophages, Monocytes, Tuberculosis -- Infection
Citation
Madhvi, A., et al. 2019. Comparison of human monocyte derived macrophages and THP1-like macrophages as in vitro models for M. tuberculosis infection. Comparative Immunology, Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, 67:101355, doi:10.1016/j.cimid.2019.101355