Research progress in enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli-induced apoptosis of intestinal epithelial cells

Abstract:

Adhesins and enterotoxins are the main virulence factors produced by enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC), one of the major pathogens causing diarrhea in both humans and animals. Adhesins mediate the initial adhesion of ETEC to intestinal epithelial cells, which leads to ETEC colonization of the host small intestine. Subsequently, the ETEC produces enterotoxins, which result in the loss of electrolytes and culminates in watery diarrhea. ETEC is typically regarded as a non-invasive pathogen, which does not induce the apoptosis of intestinal epithelial cells or destroy intestinal barrier structure. However, more and more evidence indicates that ETEC is able to induce the apoptosis of intestinal epithelial cells in vitro and in vivo. The cell apoptosis would destroy the integrity of the intestinal mucosal barrier of the host and lead to ETEC-caused diarrhea. We introduce the mechanisms of apoptosis induced by different virulence determinants produced by ETEC, the correlation between intestinal epithelial cell apoptosis and ETEC-caused diarrhea, and the potential of using anti-apoptosis therapy to prevent ETEC infection in piglets, aiming to provide a reference for deciphering the molecular pathogenic mechanism of ETEC and provide new measures for preventing and treating diarrhea caused by the pathogen.