Brucella suis vaccine strain 2 promotes intracellular proliferation by inducing M2 macrophage polarization and autophagy through PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling.

Li H, Yang J, Xu T, Ji Z, Wang Zhenhai · 2026 · Journal of Medical Microbiology · Atlas ID LI2026B

What this study shows

Brucella suis vaccine strain 2 drives mixed M1/M2 macrophage polarisation and autophagic activation in BV2 cells; the M2 state and autophagy synergistically promote intracellular bacterial replication through PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling.

Abstract

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The persistent intracellular survival of Brucella is a key factor in immune evasion and chronic infection. This study investigated the interplay between macrophage polarization, autophagy and intracellular proliferation of Brucella suis vaccine strain 2 (S2) and the involvement of PI3K/AKT/mTOR signalling in BV2 cells. Following S2 infection, elevated expression of iNOS, Arg1, p-Akt, mTOR and autophagy-related proteins (LC3B-I, LC3B-II, ULK1) was observed with decreased p62. Laser confocal microscopy revealed efficient autophagosome-to-autolysosome conversion.

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At a glance

Evidence type	M Molecular — cells, biochemistry, structure Marked M because it is molecular or in-vitro work (model: BV2 murine microglial cells) rather than a whole-organism health-outcome study. That is often exactly where causal biology gets established -- the code says which system the finding was shown in, and nothing about how good the work is.
Study type	5 - Mechanistic / In Vitro
Model system	BV2 murine microglial cells
Journal	Journal of Medical Microbiology
Year	2026
Peer reviewed	Yes
Record last updated	2026-08-22
Source	DOI 10.1099/jmm.0.002182 · PMID 42658194 · Free full text (PMC13521125)

Extracted findings

Intervention	Brucella suis S2 infection; PI3K/Akt/mTOR inhibitors; autophagy modulators
Target	PI3K/Akt/mTOR; autophagy (LC3B, ULK1, p62); macrophage polarization
Model	Mouse (BV2 cell line)
Effect	M2 polarization plus autophagy promoted intracellular bacterial replication; pathway inhibition shifted cells to M1 and suppressed autophagy

Cite this paper

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Li, H., Yang, J., Xu, T., Ji, Z., & Wang Zhenhai (2026). Brucella suis vaccine strain 2 promotes intracellular proliferation by inducing M2 macrophage polarization and autophagy through PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling. Journal of Medical Microbiology. https://doi.org/10.1099/jmm.0.002182

@article{LI2026B,
  author       = {Li, H. and Yang, J. and Xu, T. and Ji, Z. and Wang Zhenhai},
  title        = {{Brucella suis vaccine strain 2 promotes intracellular proliferation by inducing M2 macrophage polarization and autophagy through PI3K/Akt/mTOR signalling}},
  journal      = {Journal of Medical Microbiology},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {10.1099/jmm.0.002182},
  note         = {PMID: 42658194},
}

Cite this Atlas record

The record is the Atlas's own work — the evidence label, the extracted findings and the links. It is cited as part of the dataset, not as the paper.

Barton, O. (2026). Oliver's mTOR Atlas (record LI2026B) [Data set]. https://mtor-atlas.org/study/LI2026B/ · Dataset DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22059963

@misc{atlas_LI2026B,
  author       = {Barton, Oliver},
  title        = {{Oliver's mTOR Atlas}, record LI2026B},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://mtor-atlas.org/study/LI2026B/},
  doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22059963}
}