LISTERIA-MONOCYTOGENES INDUCES APOPTOSIS OF INFECTED HEPATOCYTES

Infection with blood-borne Listeria monocytogenes results in their ear ly uptake by the liver, Foci of hepatocytes become heavily infected an d develop into microabscesses. Infection results in apoptosis of the h epatocytes, This is particularly evident in the edge of the microabsce ss, where hepatocytes are not yet destroyed by the neutrophil, It is a lso apparent when neutrophils are depleted from the circulation, Infec tion of hepatocytes in culture induces their death by apoptosis with t he release of neutrophil chemoattractants. Cytokines do not reduce the multiplication of Listeria in cultured hepatocytes, This study calls attention to an early program of inflammation induced in infected cell s that are unresponsive to cytokines.