Nonbilayer Phospholipid Arrangements Are Toll-Like Receptor-2/6 and TLR-4 Agonists and Trigger Inflammation in a Mouse Model Resembling Human Lupus

Figure 4

Proinflammatory cytokines are found in the sera of mice with the disease resembling human lupus. Cytokines were detected in the sera of mice injected with egg-yolk phosphatidylcholine/egg-yolk phosphatidic acid (2 : 1) liposomes (50 nmol phosphatidic acid in 50 μL TS buffer) incubated with 5 mM MnCl₂ or 3 mM chlorpromazine (CPZ). Months indicate the time after the first injection of liposomes. The detection limits for each cytokine were 5 pg/mL IL-6, 7.3 pg/mL TNF-α, 52.7 pg/mL MCP-1, 2.5 pg/mL IFN-γ, 10 pg/mL IL-12p70, and 17.5 pg/mL IL-10. Control groups (mice injected with TS buffer or with liposomes without nonbilayer phospholipid arrangements) did not have detectable levels of these cytokines. Bars represent the mean ± SD of three independent experiments with six mice each.