Phenotypic and pathomechanistic overlap between tapasin and TAP deficiencies.

BACKGROUND: Human tapasin deficiency was reported to cause an autosomal recessive inborn error of immunity (IEI), characterized by substantially reduced cell surface expression of major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC-I). OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the immunological and the clinical consequences of tapasin deficiency. METHODS: A novel homozygous variant in TAPBP was identified by means of whole genome sequencing (WGS). The expression of tapasin and both subunits of the transporter associated with antigen presentation (TAP) were evaluated by western blotting. Cell surface and intracellular expression of MHC class I has been evaluated by flow cytometry. Small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) were used for silencing TAPBP expression in HEK293T cells. RESULTS: We identified a deletion in TAPBP (c.312del, p.(K104Nfs*6)) causing tapasin deficiency in a patient with bronchiectasis and recurrent respiratory tract infections as well as herpes zoster. Besides substantial reduction in TAP1 and TAP2 expression, PBMC from this patient and TAPBP knockdown HEK293T cells, displayed reduced cell surface expression of MHC-I, while reduction in intracellular expression of MHC-I was less prominent, suggesting a defect in MHC-I trafficking to the plasma membrane. Interferon-α (IFN-α) improved cell surface expression of MHC-I in tapasin deficient lymphocytes and TAPBP knockdown HEK293T, representing a possible therapeutic approach for tapasin deficiency. CONCLUSION: Tapasin deficiency is a very rare IEI, whose pathomechanism and clinical spectrum overlaps with TAP deficiencies.

Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium infection-induced CD11b+ Gr1+ cells ameliorate allergic airway inflammation.

Allergies are mainly characterized as an unrestrained Th2-biased immune response. Epidemiological data associate protection from allergic diseases with the exposure to certain infectious agents during early stages of life. Modulation of the immune response by pathogens has been considered to be a major factor influencing this protection. Recent evidence indicates that immunoregulatory mechanisms induced upon infection ameliorate allergic disorders. A longitudinal study has demonstrated reduced frequency and incidence of asthma in children who reported a prior infection with Salmonella. Experimental studies involving Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium-infected murine models have confirmed protection from induced allergic airway inflammation; however, the underlying cause leading to this amelioration remains incompletely defined. In this study, we aimed to delineate the regulatory function of Salmonella Typhimurium infection in the amelioration of allergic airway inflammation in mice. We observed a significant increase in CD11b+ Gr1+ myeloid cell populations in mice after infection with S. Typhimurium. Using in vitro and in vivo studies, we confirmed that these myeloid cells reduce airway inflammation by influencing Th2 cells. Further characterization showed that the CD11b+ Gr1+ myeloid cells exhibited their inhibitory effect by altering GATA-3 expression and interleukin-4 (IL-4) production by Th2 cells. These results indicate that the expansion of myeloid cells upon S. Typhimurium infection could potentially play a significant role in curtailing allergic airway inflammation. These findings signify the contribution of myeloid cells in preventing Th2-mediated diseases and suggest their possible application as therapeutics.