ArticlePLoS pathogens2020
Mycolactone toxin induces an inflammatory response by targeting the IL-1β pathway: Mechanistic insight into Buruli ulcer pathophysiology.
Article in PLoS pathogens, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers.
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Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 48 citations in OpenAlex.
- Aberrant stromal tissue factor localisation and mycolactone-driven vascular dysfunction, exacerbated by IL-1β, are linked to fibrin formation in Buruli ulcer lesions.PLoS pathogens · 2022Trial
- Biological, Environmental, and Social Determinants of Buruli Ulcer in Africa: Their Interplay Across Disease Severity and Patient Outcome.Public health challenges · 2026Review
- Buruli ulcer.Nature reviews. Disease primers · 2025Review
- Review
- Micronutrient-deficient diets and possible environmental enteric dysfunction in Buruli ulcer endemic communities in Ghana: Lower dietary diversity and reduced serum zinc and vitamin C implicate micronutrient status a possible susceptibility factor.PLoS neglected tropical diseases · 2025Article
- TheeLife · 2025Article
- Computational and GC-MS screening of bioactive compounds from Thymus Vulgaris targeting mycolactone protein associated with Buruli ulcer.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- The role of antibiotic-derived mycobacterial vesicles in tuberculosis pathogenesis.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Mycobacterium intracellulare mediates macrophage pyroptosis by activating AIM2 and NLRP3 inflammasomes.Veterinary research communications · 2024Article
- Mycolactone causes destructive Sec61-dependent loss of the endothelial glycocalyx and vessel basement membrane: a new indirect mechanism driving tissue necrosis inbioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- Review
- Article
- Significance of extracellular vesicles in orchestration of immune responses inFrontiers in cellular and infection microbiology · 2024Review
- Changes in Inflammatory Markers in Patients Treated for Buruli Ulcer and Their Ability to Predict Paradoxical Reactions.The Journal of infectious diseases · 2023Article
- Inflammasome-triggered IL-18 controls skin inflammation in the progression of Buruli ulcer.PLoS pathogens · 2023Article
- Type-I interferons promote innate immune tolerance in macrophages exposed to Mycobacterium ulcerans vesicles.PLoS pathogens · 2023Article
- Gut Microbiota Ecosystem Governance of Host Inflammation, Mitochondrial Respiration and Skeletal Homeostasis.Biomedicines · 2022Review
- Article
- Interaction of Mycobacteria With Host Cell Inflammasomes.Frontiers in immunology · 2022Review
- Induced Synthesis of Mycolactone Restores the Pathogenesis ofFrontiers in immunology · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
18 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Mycolactone, a lipid-like toxin, is the major virulence factor of Mycobacterium ulcerans, the etiological agent of Buruli ulcer. Its involvement in lesion development has been widely described in early stages of the disease, through its cytotoxic and immunosuppressive activities, but less is known about later stages. Here, we revisit the role of mycolactone in disease outcome and provide the first demonstration of the pro-inflammatory potential of this toxin. We found that the mycolactone-containing mycobacterial extracellular vesicles produced by M. ulcerans induced the production of IL-1β, a potent pro-inflammatory cytokine, in a TLR2-dependent manner, targeting NLRP3/1 inflammasomes. We show our data to be relevant in a physiological context. The in vivo injection of these mycolactone-containing vesicles induced a strong local inflammatory response and tissue damage, which were prevented by corticosteroids. Finally, several soluble pro-inflammatory factors, including IL-1β, were detected in infected tissues from mice and Buruli ulcer patients. Our results revisit Buruli ulcer pathophysiology by providing new insight, thus paving the way for the development of new therapeutic strategies taking the pro-inflammatory potential of mycolactone into account.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.