Dynamic High-Content Imaging Reveals Surface Exposure Of Virulent Leishmania Amastigotes In Infected Macrophages Undergoing Pyroptosis

Abstract

Leishmania spp are obligate intracellular parasites that infect vertebrate phagocytes, notably macrophages. We previously reported that Leishmania amazonensis (L. am) subvert the host cell pro-inflammatory response by dampening the macrophage NLRP3 inflammasome. No information is available on how Leishmania infection affects inflammatory cell death termed pyroptosis, known to limit microbial infection. Here, we provide first evidence that L. amazonensis-infected macrophages can undergo pyroptosis when subjected to pro-inflammatory stimuli. We analyzed the dynamics of the pyroptotic process and the fate of intracellular amastigotes at the single cell level using spinning disk confocal microscopy and high-content, real-time imaging. Bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs) were infected with L. am amastigotes isolated from footpad lesions and sequentially treated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP) for canonical NLRP3 inflammasome priming and activation. Real-time monitoring was performed for 240 min post ATP addition. Longitudinal analyses revealed distinct phases of the pyroptotic process, including rapid decay of the parasitophorous vacuole (PV) as monitored by the pH-sensitive lysotracker fluid phase marker, progressive decrease in macrophage viability as monitored by accumulation of the nuclear dye YO-PRO-1, followed by translocation of the luminal PV membrane to the cell surface observed for 40% of macrophages, resulting in the extracellular exposure of amastigotes that remained anchored to the PV membrane. Scanning and transmission electron microscopy analyses revealed a highly polarized orientation of parasites with exclusive exposure of the anterior pole toward the extracellular milieu, and an attachment site forming a potential biological junction between the parasite posterior pole and the PV membrane. We showed that the exposed parasites are resistant to the cytolytic host cell activities linked to pyroptosis and retain their full infectious potential in reinfection experiments using naive macrophages. Together these data uncover a novel Leishmania immune subversion strategy that may allow stealthy parasite dissemination via the uptake of pyroptotic host debris by uninfected phagocytes.