AUTHOR=Farias Raquel, Rousseau Simon TITLE=The TAK1→IKKβ→TPL2→MKK1/MKK2 Signaling Cascade Regulates IL-33 Expression in Cystic Fibrosis Airway Epithelial Cells Following Infection by Pseudomonas aeruginosa JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology VOLUME=3 YEAR=2016 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fcell.2015.00087 DOI=10.3389/fcell.2015.00087 ISSN=2296-634X ABSTRACT=In cystic fibrosis (CF), chronic respiratory infections result in an exaggerated and uncontrolled inflammatory response that ultimately lead to a decrease in pulmonary function. We have previously described the presence of the alarmin IL-33 in lung explants from CF patients. The signals regulating IL-33 expression in the airway epithelium following a gram-negative bacterial infection are currently unknown. Our objective was to characterize the pathways in CF airway epithelial cells (AECs) leading to an increase in IL-33 expression. We found that, in CF AECs expressing a deletion of a phenylalanine at position 508 of the gene coding for Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTRdelF508), exposure to live Pseudomonas aeruginosa upregulates IL-33 via the TLR2 and TLR5 signaling pathways. This up-regulation can be partially or fully reverted by pre-incubating CFTRdelF508 AECs with a CFTR corrector (VX-809) and/or a CFTR potentiator (VX-770). Similarly, incubation with the CFTR corrector and/or the CFTR potentiator also decreased IL-8 expression in response to infection. Moreover, using different protein kinase inhibitors that target elements downstream of TLR signaling, we show that the TAK1→IKKβ→TPL2→MKK1/MKK2 pathway regulates IL-33 expression following an infection with P. aeruginosa. Our findings represent the first characterization of the signals regulating IL-33 expression in CF airway epithelial cells in response to a bacterial infection.