Inflamed Intestinal Mucosa Features a Specific Epithelial Expression Pattern of Indoleamine 2,3-Dioxygenase

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Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) catalyzes the first step in the degradation of tryptophan, an essential amino acid. During inflammation IDO can be induced in different cell types resulting in local tryptophan depletion. This inhibits T cell proliferation and may induce apoptosis. High expression of IDO was previously found in inflammatory bowel disease and is thought to represent a mechanism for downregulation of the local immune response. Our aim is to investigate the expression pattern of IDO in normal and inflamed murine and human intestinal mucosa. Immunohistochemical staining for IDO was performed on paraffin sections of colon of two mouse models for colitis and their controls and on paraffin sections of human ileum and colon in normal and two different inflammatory conditions, namely inflammatory bowel disease and diverticulitis. IDO immunohistochemistry showed similar results in murine and human tissue. In normal, as well as in inflamed mucosa, some mononuclear cells, fibroblasts and endothelial cells were positive for IDO. In inflamed mucosa a specific expression pattern of epithelial IDO was found where epithelial cells flanking ulcers or bordering crypt abscesses showed high IDO expression. Moreover, in human intestinal inflammation, IDO was expressed in ulcer associated cell lineage. Since bacterial invasion is more pronounced in erosions and in crypt abscesses and since IDO activity and the resulting local tryptophan depletion can cause growth arrest of several tryptophan-dependent microorganisms, IDO expression in the vicinity of interruptions of the epithelial barrier may point to a role for IDO as a local anti-infectious agent. Furthermore, expression of IDO at the margin of ulcerations and in the reparative ulcer-associated cell lineage suggests involvement of IDO in repair processes.