Melioidosis is a severe infection caused by the gram-negative bacterium, Burkholderia pseudomallei, which is endemic in Southeast Asia.
In a new study, Willem Joost Wiersinga and colleagues from the Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam have investigated the role in this infection of Toll-like receptors (TLRs), molecules which are essential to the host defense against pathogens by virtue of their capacity to detect microbes and initiate the immune response.
Although both TLR2 and TLR4 contributed to cellular responsiveness to B. pseudomallei in vitro, only TLR2 had an effect on the immune response in a mouse model of the disease. The authors conclude that inhibition of TLR2 may be a novel treatment strategy in melioidosis.