Staphylococcus aureus Epicutaneous Infection Is Suppressed by Lactococcus lactis Strain Plasma via Interleukin 17A Elicitation

Abstract

Background: Lactococcus lactis strain Plasma (LC-Plasma) was revealed to stimulate plasmacytoid dendritic cells and induce antiviral immunity in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we assessed the effects of LC-Plasma on skin immunity.

Methods: To evaluate the effect of LC-Plasma on skin immunity and Staphylococcus aureus epicutaneous infection, lymphocyte activities in skin-draining lymph nodes (SLNs) and gene expression in skin were analyzed after 2 weeks of oral administration of LC-Plasma. To evaluate the mechanisms of interleukin 17A production, SLN lymphocytes were cultured with or without LC-Plasma, and the interleukin 17A concentrations in supernatants were measured.

Results: Oral administration of LC-Plasma activated plasma dendritic cells in SLNs, augmented skin homeostasis, and elicited suppression of Staphylococcus aureus, Staphylococcus epidermidis, and Propionibacterium acnes proliferation. In addition, significant suppression of the S. aureus burden and reduced skin inflammation were observed following oral administration of LC-Plasma. Furthermore, a subsequent in vitro study revealed that LC-Plasma could elicit interleukin 17A production from CD8+ T cells and that its induction mechanism depended on the Toll-like receptor 9 signaling pathway, with type I interferon partially involved.

Conclusions: Our results suggest that LC-Plasma oral administration enhances skin homeostasis via plasma dendritic cell activation in SLNs, resulting in suppression of S. aureus epicutaneous infection and skin inflammation.

Keywords: Staphylococcus aureus infection; LC-Plasma; interleukin 17A; plasmacytoid dendritic cells; skin immunity.