Th17 cell promotes apoptosis of IL-23R+ neurons in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.

Myelin antigen-reactive Th1 and Th17 cells are critical drivers of central nervous system (CNS) autoimmune inflammation. Transcription factors T-bet and RORγt play a crucial role in the differentiation and function of Th1 and Th17 cells, and impart them a pathogenic role in CNS autoimmune inflammation. Mice deficient in these two factors do not develop experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). While T-bet and RORγt are known to regulate the expression of several cell adhesion and migratory molecules in T cells, their role in supporting Th1 and Th17 trafficking to the CNS is not completely understood. More importantly, once Th1 and Th17 cells reach the CNS, how the function of these transcription factors modulates the local inflammatory response during EAE is unclear. In the present study, we showed that myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein 35-55 peptide (MOG35-55)-specific Th1 cells deficient in RORγt could cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB) but failed to induce demyelination, apoptosis of neurons, and EAE. Pathogenic Th17 cell-derived cytokines GM-CSF, TNF-α, IL-17A, and IL-21 significantly increased the surface expression of IL-23R on neuronal cells. Furthermore, we showed that, in EAE, neurons in the brain and spinal cord express IL-23R. IL-23-IL-23R signaling in neuronal cells caused phosphorylation of STAT3 (Ser727 and Tyr705) and induced cleaved caspase 3 and cleaved poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase-1 (PARP-1) molecules in an IL-23R-dependent manner and caused apoptosis. Thus, we provided a mechanism showing that T-bet is required to recruit pathogenic Th17 cells to the CNS and RORγt-mediated inflammatory response to drive the apoptosis of IL-23R+ neurons in the CNS and cause EAE. Understanding detailed molecular mechanisms will help to design better strategies to control neuroinflammation and autoimmunity. ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY: IL-23-IL-23R signaling promotes apoptosis of CNS neurons.

CCR6 signaling inhibits suppressor function of induced-Treg during gut inflammation.

CCR6 is a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) that binds to a specific chemokine, CCL20. The role of CCR6-CCL20 is very well studied in the migration of immune cells, but the non-chemotaxis functions of CCR6 signaling were not known. Here, we show that during gut inflammation, the frequency of Foxp3+CD4+ T cells (Tregs) reduced in the secondary lymphoid tissues and CCR6+ Tregs enhanced the expression of RORγt. The peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of ulcerative colitis (UC) patients showed lower percentages of Foxp3+CD4+ T cells, as compared to healthy individuals, with CCR6+ Tregs showing higher RORγt expression as compared to CCR6-Tregs. CCL20 inhibited the TGF-ß1-induced Treg (iTreg) differentiation and directed them towards the pathogenic Th17-lineage in a CCR6-dependent manner. The iTreg that differentiated in the presence of CCL20 showed lower surface expression of suppressor molecules such as CD39, CD73 and FasL, and had impaired suppressive function. Furthermore, CCR6 signaling induced phosphorylation of Akt, mTOR, and STAT3 molecules in T cells. In conclusion, we have identified a new role of CCR6 signaling in the differentiation of iTregs during inflammation and gut autoimmunity.

Anticancer properties and enhancement of therapeutic potential of cisplatin by leaf extract of Zanthoxylum armatum DC.

BACKGROUND: Clinical use of chemotherapeutic drug, cisplatin is limited by its toxicity and drug resistance. Therefore, efforts continue for the discovery of novel combination therapies with cisplatin, to increase efficacy and reduce its toxicity. Here, we screened 16 medicinal plant extracts from Northeast part of India and found that leaf extract of Zanthoxylum armatum DC. (ZALE) induced cytotoxicity as well as an effect on the increasing of the efficiency of chemotherapeutic drugs (cisplatin, mitomycin C and camptothecin). This work shows detail molecular mechanism of anti-cancer activity of ZALE and its potential for combined treatment regimens to enhance the apoptotic response of chemotherapeutic drugs. RESULTS: ZALE induced cytotoxicity, nuclear blebbing and DNA fragmentation in HeLA cells suggesting apoptosis induction in human cervical cell line. However, the apoptosis induced was independent of caspase 3 activation and poly ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) cleavage. Further, ZALE activated Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) pathway as revealed by increased phosphorylation of extracellular-signal-regulated kinases (ERK), p38 and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK). Inhibition of ERK activation but not p38 or JNK completely blocked the ZALE induced apoptosis suggesting an ERK dependent apoptosis. Moreover, ZALE generated DNA double strand breaks as suggested by the induction γH2AX foci formation. Interestingly, pretreatment of certain cancer cell lines with ZALE, sensitized the cancer cells to cisplatin and other chemotherapeutic drugs. Enhanced caspase activation was observed in the synergistic interaction among chemotherapeutic drugs and ZALE. CONCLUSION: Purification and identification of the bio-active molecules from the ZALE or as a complementary treatment for a sequential treatment of ZALE with chemotherapeutic drugs might be a new challenger to open a new therapeutic window for the novel anti-cancer treatment.

T cell receptor signaling in the differentiation and plasticity of CD4+ T cells.

CD4+ T cells are critical components of the adaptive immune system. The T cell receptor (TCR) and co-receptor signaling cascades shape the phenotype and functions of CD4+ T cells. TCR signaling plays a crucial role in T cell development, antigen recognition, activation, and differentiation upon recognition of foreign- or auto-antigens. In specific autoimmune conditions, altered TCR repertoire is reported and can predispose autoimmunity with organ-specific inflammation and tissue damage. TCR signaling modulates various signaling cascades and regulates epigenetic and transcriptional regulation during homeostasis and disease conditions. Understanding the mechanism by which coreceptors and cytokine signals control the magnitude of TCR signal amplification will aid in developing therapeutic strategies to treat inflammation and autoimmune diseases. This review focuses on the role of the TCR signaling cascade and its components in the activation, differentiation, and plasticity of various CD4+ T cell subsets.

Vγ2+ γδ T Cells in the Presence of Anti-CD40L Control Surgical Inflammation and Promote Skin Allograft Survival.

γδ T cells represent a small fraction of total T cells in the body and do not use classical polymorphic major histocompatibility complex‒loaded peptides for mounting an immune response. The importance of the effector and regulatory function of γδ T cells in infections, autoimmunity, and tumor models are well characterized. In this study, we investigated the mechanistic role of γδ T cells in costimulatory blockade‒induced transplantation tolerance. We used donor-specific transfusion and anti-CD40L treatment in C57BL/6 mice to induce tolerance to BALB/c skin allografts. We show that depletion of γδ T cells, specifically Vγ2+ γδ T cells, led to the acute rejection of skin allografts despite tolerogen treatment. Tolerogen treatment promoted CD39+Vγ2+ γδ T cells and suppressed IFN-γ‒producing Vγ2+ γδ T cells in the spleen and allografts. Vγ2+ γδ T cells isolated from tolerized mice suppress T helper type 1 cell differentiation. Adoptive transfer of these regulatory Vγ2+ γδ T cells prolonged the survival of allografts in an untreated recipient and Tcrδ‒/‒ mice. Together, our data show that the Vγ2+ subset promotes costimulatory blockade‒induced survival of skin allografts and that tolerogenic Vγ2+ T cells can be used as an adoptive cellular therapy to promote the survival of allografts.

In vitro-induced Foxp3+ CD8+ regulatory T cells suppress allergic IgE response in the gut.

Several subsets of CD8+ T cells are known to have a suppressive function in different tissues and diseases in mice and humans. Due to the lack of a consensus on the phenotype of regulatory CD8+ T cells and very low frequency in the body, its clinical use as adoptive cellular therapy has not advanced much. In the present work, using DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-Aza-2'-deoxycytidine (Aza), we efficiently and stably differentiated naïve CD8+ T cells (CD8+ CD25- CD44- cells) into the CD8+ Foxp3+ regulatory CD8+ T cells (CD8 Tregs). We also generated OVA peptide257-264 -specific CD8+ Foxp3+ Tregs. Compared with activated CD8 T cells, Aza plus TGF-ß-induced CD8+ Foxp3+ Tregs showed significantly increased surface expression of CD39, CD73, CD122, CD62L, and CD103, and secreted TGF-ß and suppressed the proliferation of effector CD4+ T cells. Interestingly, CD8+ Foxp3+ Tregs exhibited low expression of perforin and granzyme required for cytotoxic function. Analysis of chemokine receptors showed that TGF-ß + Aza induced CD8+ Foxp3+ Tregs expressed gut-tropic chemokine receptors CCR6 and CCR9, and chemokine receptors CCR7 and CXCR3 required for mobilization into the spleen, lymph nodes, and gut-associated lymphoid tissues. Adoptive transfer of induced CD8+ Foxp3+ Tregs restored cholera toxin-induced breakdown of oral tolerance to OVA by regulating OVA-specific IgE and IgG1. Altogether, we showed an efficient method to generate antigen-specific CD8+ Foxp3+ Tregs, and the adoptive transfer of these cells induces oral tolerance by suppressing allergic response and maintaining intestinal homeostasis.

Protective role of host complement system in Aspergillus fumigatus infection.

Invasive aspergillosis (IA) is a life-threatening fungal infection for immunocompromised hosts. It is, therefore, necessary to understand the immune pathways that control this infection. Although the primary infection site is the lungs, aspergillosis can disseminate to other organs through unknown mechanisms. Herein we have examined the in vivo role of various complement pathways as well as the complement receptors C3aR and C5aR1 during experimental systemic infection by Aspergillus fumigatus, the main species responsible for IA. We show that C3 knockout (C3-/-) mice are highly susceptible to systemic infection of A. fumigatus. Intriguingly, C4-/- and factor B (FB)-/- mice showed susceptibility similar to the wild-type mice, suggesting that either the complement pathways display functional redundancy during infection (i.e., one pathway compensates for the loss of the other), or complement is activated non-canonically by A. fumigatus protease. Our in vitro study substantiates the presence of C3 and C5 cleaving proteases in A. fumigatus. Examination of the importance of the terminal complement pathway employing C5-/- and C5aR1-/- mice reveals that it plays a vital role in the conidial clearance. This, in part, is due to the increased conidial uptake by phagocytes. Together, our data suggest that the complement deficiency enhances the susceptibility to systemic infection by A. fumigatus.

CCR6-CCL20 axis as a therapeutic target for autoimmune diseases.

Chemokine receptor CCR6 is expressed on various cells such as B cells, immature dendritic cells, innate lymphoid cells (ILCs), regulatory CD4 T cells, and Th17 cells. CCL20 is the only known high-affinity ligand that binds to CCR6 and drives CCR6+ cells' migration in tissues. CCL20 is mainly produced by epithelial cells, and its expression is increased by several folds under inflammatory conditions. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) in patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), psoriasis (PS), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and multiple sclerosis (MS) showed a very strong correlation between the expression of CCR6 and disease severity. It has been shown that disruption of CCR6-CCL20 interaction by using antibodies or antagonists prevents the migration of CCR6 expressing immune cells at the site of inflammation and reduces the severity of the disease. This review discussed the importance of the CCR6-CCL20 axis in IBD, PS, RA, and MS, and recent advances in targeting the CCR6-CCL20 in controlling these autoimmune diseases.

Anticancer properties and enhancement of therapeutic potential of cisplatin by leaf extract of Zanthoxylum armatum DC

BACKGROUND: Clinical use of chemotherapeutic drug, cisplatin is limited by its toxicity and drug resistance. Therefore, efforts continue for the discovery of novel combination therapies with cisplatin, to increase efficacy and reduce its toxicity. Here, we screened 16 medicinal plant extracts from Northeast part of India and found that leaf extract of Zanthoxylum armatum DC. (ZALE) induced cytotoxicity as well as an effect on the increasing of the efficiency of chemotherapeutic drugs (cisplatin, mitomycin C and camptothecin). This work shows detail molecular mechanism of anti-cancer activity of ZALE and its potential for combined treatment regimens to enhance the apoptotic response of chemotherapeutic drugs. RESULTS: ZALE induced cytotoxicity, nuclear blebbing and DNA fragmentation in HeLA cells suggesting apoptosis induction in human cervical cell line. However, the apoptosis induced was independent of caspase 3 activation and poly ADP ribose polymerase (PARP) cleavage. Further, ZALE activated Mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK) pathway as revealed by increased phosphorylation of extracellular-signal-regulated kinases (ERK), p38 and c-Jun N-ter-minal kinase (JNK). Inhibition of ERK activation but not p38 or JNK completely blocked the ZALE induced apoptosis suggesting an ERK dependent apoptosis. Moreover, ZALE generated DNA double strand breaks as suggested by the induction γH2AX foci formation. Interestingly, pretreatment of certain cancer cell lines with ZALE, sensitized the cancer cells to cisplatin and other chemotherapeutic drugs. Enhanced caspase activation was observed in the synergistic interaction among chemotherapeutic drugs and ZALE. CONCLUSION: Purification and identification of the bio-active molecules from the ZALE or as a complementary treatment for a sequential treatment of ZALE with chemotherapeutic drugs might be a new challenger to open a new therapeutic window for the novel anti-cancer treatment.