Mycobacterium tuberculosis Rv0341 Promotes Mycobacterium Survival in In Vitro Hostile Environments and within Macrophages and Induces Cytokines Expression

Mycobacterium tuberculosisrepresents an ancient deadly human pathogen that can survive and multiply within macrophages. The effectors are key players for the successful pathogenesis of this bacterium.M. tuberculosisopen reading frame (ORF)Rv0341, a pathogenic mycobacteria-specific gene, was found to be upregulated in macrophages isolated from human tuberculosis granuloma and inside the macrophages during in vitro infection byM. tuberculosis. To understand the exact role of this gene, we expressed theRv0341gene inM. smegmatis, which is a non-pathogenicMycobacterium. We found that Rv0341 expression can alter colony morphology, reduce the sliding capability, and decrease the cell wall permeability ofM. smegmatis. Furthermore, Rv0341 remarkably enhancedM. smegmatissurvival within macrophages and under multiple in vitro stress conditions when compared with the control strain. Ms_Rv0341 significantly induced expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, and IL-10 compared withM. smegmatisharboring an empty vector. In summary, these data suggest that Rv0341 is one of theM. tuberculosisvirulence determinants that can promote bacilli survival in harsh conditions and inside macrophages.Keywords:Mycobacterium tuberculosis;Rv0341;stress;infection;macrophages;cytokines