Class B scavenger receptor types I and II and CD36 mediate bacterial recognition and proinflammatory signaling induced by Escherichia coli, lipopolysaccharide, and cytosolic chaperonin 60.

Class B scavenger receptors (SR-B) are lipoprotein receptors that also mediate pathogen recognition, phagocytosis, and clearance as well as pathogen-induced signaling. In this study we report that three members of the SR-B family, namely, CLA-1, CLA-2, and CD36, mediate recognition of bacteria not only through interaction with cell wall LPS but also with cytosolic chaperonin 60. HeLa cells stably transfected with any of these SR-Bs demonstrated markedly (3- to 5-fold) increased binding and endocytosis of Escherichia coli, LPS, and chaperonin 60 (GroEL) as revealed by both FACS analysis and confocal microscopy imaging. Increased pathogen (E. coli, LPS, and GroEL) binding to SR-Bs was also associated with the dose-dependent stimulation of cytokine secretion in the order of CD36 > CLA-2 > CLA-1 in HEK293 cells. Pathogen-induced IL-6-secretion was reduced in macrophages from CD36- and SR-BI/II-null mice by 40-50 and 30-40%, respectively. Intravenous GroEL administration increased plasma IL-6 and CXCL1 levels in mice. The cytokine responses were 40-60% lower in CD36(-/-) relative to wild-type mice, whereas increased cytokine responses were found in SR-BI/II(-/-) mice. While investigating the discrepancy of in vitro versus in vivo data in SR-BI/II deficiency, SR-BI/II(-/-) mice were found to respond to GroEL administration without increases in either plasma corticosterone or aldosterone as normally seen in wild-type mice. SR-BI/II(-/-) mice with mineralocorticoid replacement demonstrated an ∼40-50% reduction in CXCL1 and IL-6 responses. These results demonstrate that, by recognizing and mediating inflammatory signaling of both bacterial cell wall LPS and cytosolic GroEL, all three SR-B family members play important roles in innate immunity and host defense.