The IFN-inducible Golgi- and endoplasmic reticulum-associated 47-kDa GTPase IIGP is transiently expressed during listeriosis

Members of the 47-kDa GTPase family are implicated in an IFN-gamma-induced, as yet unclear, mechanism that confers innate resistance against infection with intracellular pathogens. Overt immunological parameters are apparently uncompromised in mice deficient for individual members and the prototype of this family, IGTP, localizes to the endoplasmic reticulum. This suggests that these GTPases are involved in intracellular defense. We analyzed the expression of the 47-kDa GTPase cognate, IIGP, in splenic sections from mice infected with the intracellular pathogen Listeria monocytogenes by immunohistochemistry. An early transient IIGP induction was observed revealing the IFN-gamma responsiveness of cellular subcompartments within the spleen in early listeriosis. Marginal metallophilic macrophages and endothelial cells within the red and white pulp strongly expressed IIGP, while other splenocytes remained negative. In vitro analyses show, that both type I and type II IFNs are prime stimuli for IIGP induction in various cells, including L. monocytogenes-infected or LPS-stimulated macrophages, endothelial cells, and activated T cells. Contrary to the subcellular localization of IGTP, IIGP was predominantly associated with the Golgi apparatus and also localizes to the endoplasmic reticulum. We conclude that IIGP exerts a distinct role in IFN-induced intracellular membrane trafficking or processing.