Acyltransferase skinny hedgehog regulates TGFß-dependent fibroblast activation in SSc.

OBJECTIVES: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is characterised by aberrant hedgehog signalling in fibrotic tissues. The hedgehog acyltransferase (HHAT) skinny hedgehog catalyses the attachment of palmitate onto sonic hedgehog (SHH). Palmitoylation of SHH is required for multimerisation of SHH proteins, which is thought to promote long-range, endocrine hedgehog signalling. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of HHAT in the pathogenesis of SSc. METHODS: Expression of HHAT was analysed by real-time polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR), immunofluorescence and histomorphometry. The effects of HHAT knockdown were analysed by reporter assays, target gene studies and quantification of collagen release and myofibroblast differentiation in cultured human fibroblasts and in two mouse models. RESULTS: The expression of HHAT was upregulated in dermal fibroblasts of patients with SSc in a transforming growth factor-ß (TGFß)/SMAD-dependent manner. Knockdown of HHAT reduced TGFß-induced hedgehog signalling as well as myofibroblast differentiation and collagen release in human dermal fibroblasts. Knockdown of HHAT in the skin of mice ameliorated bleomycin-induced and topoisomerase-induced skin fibrosis. CONCLUSION: HHAT is regulated in SSc in a TGFß-dependent manner and in turn stimulates TGFß-induced long-range hedgehog signalling to promote fibroblast activation and tissue fibrosis. Targeting of HHAT might be a novel approach to more selectively interfere with the profibrotic effects of long-range hedgehog signalling.

The histone demethylase Jumonji domain-containing protein 3 (JMJD3) regulates fibroblast activation in systemic sclerosis.

OBJECTIVES: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) fibroblasts remain activated even in the absence of exogenous stimuli. Epigenetic alterations are thought to play a role for this endogenous activation. Trimethylation of histone H3 on lysine 27 (H3K27me3) is regulated by Jumonji domain-containing protein 3 (JMJD3) and ubiquitously transcribed tetratricopeptide repeat on chromosome X (UTX) in a therapeutically targetable manner. The aim of this study was to explore H3K27me3 demethylases as potential targets for the treatment of fibrosis. METHODS: JMJD3 was inactivated by small interfering RNA-mediated knockdown and by pharmacological inhibition with GSKJ4. The effects of targeted inactivation of JMJD3 were analysed in cultured fibroblasts and in the murine models of bleomycin-induced and topoisomerase-I (topoI)-induced fibrosis. H3K27me3 at the FRA2 promoter was analysed by ChIP. RESULTS: The expression of JMJD3, but not of UTX, was increased in fibroblasts in SSc skin and in experimental fibrosis in a transforming growth factor beta (TGFß)-dependent manner. Inactivation of JMJD3 reversed the activated fibroblast phenotype in SSc fibroblasts and prevented the activation of healthy dermal fibroblasts by TGFß. Pharmacological inhibition of JMJD3 ameliorated bleomycin-induced and topoI-induced fibrosis in well-tolerated doses. JMJD3 regulated fibroblast activation in a FRA2-dependent manner: Inactivation of JMJD3 reduced the expression of FRA2 by inducing accumulation of H3K27me3 at the FRA2 promoter. Moreover, the antifibrotic effects of JMJD3 inhibition were reduced on knockdown of FRA2. CONCLUSION: We present first evidence for a deregulation of JMJD3 in SSc. JMJD3 modulates fibroblast activation by regulating the levels of H3K27me3 at the promoter of FRA2. Targeted inhibition of JMJD3 limits the aberrant activation of SSc fibroblasts and exerts antifibrotic effects in two murine models.

Inactivation of autophagy ameliorates glucocorticoid-induced and ovariectomy-induced bone loss.

OBJECTIVES: Autophagy has recently been shown to regulate osteoclast activity and osteoclast differentiation. Here, we aim to investigate the impact of autophagy inhibition as a potential therapeutic approach for the treatment of osteoporosis in preclinical models. METHODS: Systemic bone loss was induced in mice by glucocorticoids and by ovariectomy (OVX). Autophagy was targeted by conditional inactivation of autophagy-related gene 7 (Atg7) and by treatment with chloroquine (CQ). Bone density was evaluated by microCT. The role of autophagy on osteoclastogenesis was analysed by osteoclastogenesis and bone resorption assays. The quantification of receptor activator of nuclear factor κ B ligand and osteoprotegerin proteins in cocultures was performed using ELISA whereas that of osteoclast and osteoblast differentiation markers was by qPCR. RESULTS: Selective deletion of Atg7 in monocytes from Atg7(fl/fl)_x_LysM-Cre mice mitigated glucocorticoid-induced and OVX-induced osteoclast differentiation and bone loss compared with Atg7(fl/fl) littermates. Pharmacological inhibition of autophagy by treatment with CQ suppressed glucocorticoid-induced osteoclastogenesis and protected mice from bone loss. Similarly, inactivation of autophagy shielded mice from OVX-induced bone loss. Inhibition of autophagy led to decreased osteoclast differentiation with lower expression of osteoclast markers such as NFATc1, tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase, OSCAR and cathepsin K and attenuated bone resorption in vitro. In contrast, osteoblast differentiation was not affected by inhibition of autophagy. CONCLUSIONS: Pharmacological or genetic inactivation of autophagy ameliorated glucocorticoid-induced and OVX-induced bone loss by inhibiting osteoclastogenesis. These findings may have direct translational implications for the treatment of osteoporosis, since inhibitors of autophagy such as CQ are already in clinical use.

T cell costimulation molecules CD80/86 inhibit osteoclast differentiation by inducing the IDO/tryptophan pathway.

Bone resorption is seminal for the physiological remodeling of bone during life. However, this process needs to be strictly controlled; excessive bone resorption results in pathologic bone loss, osteoporosis, and fracture. We describe a control mechanism of bone resorption by the adaptive immune system. CD80/86, a pair of molecules expressed by antigen-presenting cells and involved in T cell costimulation, act as negative regulator for the generation of bone-resorbing osteoclasts. CD80/86-deficient mice were osteopenic because of increased osteoclast differentiation. CD80/86-deficient osteoclasts escaped physiological inhibition by CTLA-4 or regulatory T cells. Mechanistically, engagement of CD80/86 by CTLA-4 induced activation of the enzyme indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) in osteoclast precursors, which degraded tryptophan and promoted apoptosis. Concordantly, IDO-deficient mice also showed an osteopenic bone phenotype with higher numbers of osteoclast precursors and osteoclasts. Also, IDO-deficient mononuclear cells escaped the anti-osteoclastogenic effect of CTLA-4. This molecular mechanism was also present in humans because targeting CD80/86 by abatacept, a CTLA-4-immunoglobulin fusion protein, reduced, whereas blockade of CTLA-4 by ipilimumab antibody enhanced, the frequency of peripheral osteoclast precursors and osteoclastogenesis. In summary, these data show an important role of the adaptive immune system, in particular T cell CD80/86 costimulation molecules, in the physiological regulation of bone resorption and preservation of bone mass, as well as affect the understanding of the function of current and future drugs fostering or blocking the effects of CTLA-4 in humans.