Tuberculosis (TB), which is caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), remains a serious global health problem. The PE/PPE family, featuring unique sequences, structures and expression in Mtb, is reported to interfere with the macrophage response to the pathogen and facilitate its infection. PPE11 (Rv0453) existed in pathogenic mycobacteria and was persistently expressed in the infected guinea pig lungs. However, the role it played in the pathogenesis remains unclear. Here, to investigate the interaction and potential mechanism of PPE11 between pathogens and hosts, we heterologously expressed PPE11 in non-pathogenic, rapidly growing Mycobacterium smegmatis strains. We found that the overexpression of the cell wall-associated protein, PPE11, can improve the viability of bacteria in the presence of lysozyme, hydrogen peroxide and acid stress. Expression of PPE11 enhanced the early survival of M. smegmatis in macrophages and sustained a higher bacterial load in mouse tissues that showed exacerbated organ pathology. Macrophages infected with recombinant M. smegmatis produced significantly greater amounts of interleukin (IL)-1 beta, IL-6, tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha and an early decrease in IL-10 along with higher levels of host cell death. Similar cytokines changes were observed in the sera of infected mice. Accordingly, PPE11 protein causes histopathological changes by disrupting the dynamic balance of the inflammatory factors and promoting host-cell death, indicating a potential role in the virulence of Mtb.
