The regulation of acute immune responses to the bacterial lung pathogen Legionella pneumophila

Abstract

Legionella pneumophila causes Legionnaires’ disease, a severe and potentially fatal bacterial pneumonia in immu-nocompromised individuals. Despite the understanding that a robust inflammatory response is important for control of L. pneumophila infection, our understanding of the network of molecular and cellular events within the lung that function to clear the bacterium is not clearly understood. This review compiles our understanding of the various molecular and cellular pathways stimulated upon infection with L. pneumophila and considers recently published advances that focus on the immune response to L. pneumophila in the lungs of mice. This includes a cooperative network of tissue-resid..