Transcription factor Oct1 and its coactivator OCA-B are selectively required for CD4 memory T cell formation and function
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ABSTRACT: Epigenetic changes are crucial for the generation of immunological memory1-4. Failure to generate or maintain these changes will result in poor memory responses. Similarly, augmenting or stabilizing the correct epigenetic states offers a potential method of enhancing immune memory. Yet the transcription factors that regulate these processes are poorly defined, as are the chromatin modifying complexes they recruit and the chromatin modifications they control. Using pathogen infection models and three different mouse models, including a new conditional allele, we find that the widely expressed transcription factor Oct15, and its cofactor OCA-B6,7, are selectively required the in vivo generation of functional CD4 memory. In vitro, both proteins are also required to maintain a poised state at the Il2 target locus in resting but previously stimulated CD4 T cells, and to generate robust Il2 expression upon restimulation. OCA-B is also required for the robust re-expression of other known targets including Il17a, and Ifng. We identify an underlying mechanism involving OCA-B recruitment of the histone lysine demethylase Jmjd1a8 to targets such as Il2 and Ifng. The findings pinpoint Oct1 and OCA-B as unanticipated mediators of CD4 T cell memory. Examination of 4 different conditions in 2 genotypes
Project description:Epigenetic changes are crucial for the generation of immunological memory. Failure to generate or maintain these changes will result in poor memory responses. Similarly, augmenting or stabilizing the correct epigenetic states offers a potential method of enhancing immune memory. Yet the transcription factors that regulate these processes are poorly defined, as are the target genes they control and they chromatin-modifying complexes they recruit. Using model pathogens and three different mouse models, we find that the widely expressed transcription factor Oct1 and its cofactor OCA-B are selectively required for the in vivo generation of functional CD4 memory. In vitro, both proteins are required to maintain a poised state at the Il2 target locus in resting but previously stimulated CD4 T cells, and to generate robust Il2 expression upon restimulation. Gene expression profiling indicates that OCA-B is also required for the robust re-expression of multiple other targets including Ifng and Il17a. ChIPseq identify multiple differentially expressed direct targets. We identify an underlying mechanism involving OCA-B recruitment of the histone lysine demethylase Jmjd1a to targets such as Il2 and Ifng. The findings pinpoint Oct1 and OCA-B as unanticipated mediators of CD4 T cell memory. Examination of transcription factor occupancy in CD4 T cells upon rest and restimulation.
Project description:The purpose of the study was to examine the role of the IRE1a-XBP1 pathway during Th2 lymphocyte activation and differentiation. In vitro Th2 cells were treated with 4μ8c, a drug that specifically inhibits IRE1a endonuclease activity, and transcriptomes were compared.
Project description:Effector cells for adoptive immunotherapy can be generated by in vitro stimulation of naïve or memory subsets of CD8+ T cells. While the characteristics of CD8+ T cell subsets are well defined, the heritable influence of those populations on their effector cell progeny is not well understood. We studied effector cells generated from naïve or central memory CD8+ T cells and found that they retained distinct gene expression signatures and developmental programs. Effector cells derived from central memory cells tended to retain their CD62L+ phenotype, but also to acquire KLRG1, an indicator of cellular senescence. In contrast, the effector cell progeny of naïve cells displayed reduced terminal differentiation, and, following infusion, they displayed greater expansion, cytokine production, and tumor destruction. These data indicate that effector cells retain a gene expression imprint conferred by their naïve or central memory progenitors, and they suggest a strategy for enhancing cancer immunotherapy. Experiment Overall Design: Effector cells were generated from naive or central memory CD8+ T cells. The cells were then rested (unstimulated) or restimulated (stimulated). This experimental design resulted in 4 groups (Naïve-derived/stimulated, Naïve-derived/unstimulated, Central memory-derived/stimulated, Central memory-derived/unstimulated). Three replicates from independent experiments were analyzed.
Project description:Epigenetic changes are crucial for the generation of immunological memory. Failure to generate or maintain these changes will result in poor memory responses. Similarly, augmenting or stabilizing the correct epigenetic states offers a potential method of enhancing immune memory. Yet the transcription factors that regulate these processes are poorly defined, as are the target genes they control and they chromatin-modifying complexes they recruit. Using model pathogens and three different mouse models, we find that the widely expressed transcription factor Oct1 and its cofactor OCA-B are selectively required for the in vivo generation of functional CD4 memory. In vitro, both proteins are required to maintain a poised state at the Il2 target locus in resting but previously stimulated CD4 T cells, and to generate robust Il2 expression upon restimulation. Gene expression profiling indicates that OCA-B is also required for the robust re-expression of multiple other targets including Ifng and Il17a. ChIPseq identify multiple differentially expressed direct targets. We identify an underlying mechanism involving OCA-B recruitment of the histone lysine demethylase Jmjd1a to targets such as Il2 and Ifng. The findings pinpoint Oct1 and OCA-B as unanticipated mediators of CD4 T cell memory.
Project description:Epigenetic changes are crucial for the generation of immunological memory1-4. Failure to generate or maintain these changes will result in poor memory responses. Similarly, augmenting or stabilizing the correct epigenetic states offers a potential method of enhancing immune memory. Yet the transcription factors that regulate these processes are poorly defined, as are the chromatin modifying complexes they recruit and the chromatin modifications they control. Using pathogen infection models and three different mouse models, including a new conditional allele, we find that the widely expressed transcription factor Oct15, and its cofactor OCA-B6,7, are selectively required the in vivo generation of functional CD4 memory. In vitro, both proteins are also required to maintain a poised state at the Il2 target locus in resting but previously stimulated CD4 T cells, and to generate robust Il2 expression upon restimulation. OCA-B is also required for the robust re-expression of other known targets including Il17a, and Ifng. We identify an underlying mechanism involving OCA-B recruitment of the histone lysine demethylase Jmjd1a8 to targets such as Il2 and Ifng. The findings pinpoint Oct1 and OCA-B as unanticipated mediators of CD4 T cell memory.
Project description:Th17 cells are highly proinflammatory cells that are critical for clearing extracellular pathogens like fungal infections and for induction of multiple autoimmune diseases1. IL-23 plays a critical role in stabilizing and endowing Th17 cells with pathogenic effector functions2. Previous studies have shown that IL-23 signaling reinforces the Th17 phenotype by increasing expression of IL-23 receptor (IL-23R)3. However, the precise molecular mechanism by which IL-23 sustains the Th17 response and induces pathogenic effector functions has not been elucidated. Here, we used unbiased transcriptional profiling of developing Th17 cells to construct a model of their signaling network and identify major nodes that regulate Th17 development. We identified serum glucocorticoid kinase-1 (SGK1), as an essential node downstream of IL-23 signaling, critical for regulating IL-23R expression and for stabilizing the Th17 cell phenotype by deactivation of Foxo1, a direct repressor of IL-23R expression. A serine-threonine kinase homologous to AKT4, SGK1 has been associated with cell cycle and apoptosis, and has been shown to govern Na+ transport and homeostasis5, 6 7, 8. We here show that a modest increase in salt (NaCl) concentration induces SGK1 expression, promotes IL-23R expression and enhances Th17 cell differentiation in vitro and in vivo, ultimately accelerating the development of autoimmunity. The loss of SGK1 resulted in abrogation of Na+-mediated Th17 differentiation in an IL-23-dependent manner. These data indicate that SGK1 is a critical regulator for the induction of pathogenic Th17 cells and provides a molecular insight by which an environmental factor such as a high salt diet could trigger Th17 development and promote tissue inflammation. Th17 cells; comparing Sgk1-/- to WT
Project description:During persistent antigen stimulation, CD8+ cytolytic T cells (CTL) show a gradual decrease in effector function, or “exhaustion”, which impairs the immune response to tumors and infections. Here we show that NFAT, a transcription factor with an established role in T cell activation, in parallel controls a second transcriptional program conferring the characteristic features of CD8+ T cell exhaustion, including upregulation of genes encoding inhibitory cell surface receptors and diminished TCR signaling. Expression of an engineered NFAT1, which induces this negative regulatory program in the absence of the effector program, interferes with the ability of CD8+ T cells to protect against Listeria infection or attenuate tumor growth in vivo. NFAT elicits this second program of gene expression in large part by binding to a subset of the sites occupied by NFAT during a typical effector response, suggesting that a balance between the two pathways determines the outcome of TCR signaling. Determination of NFAT1 binding sites in CD8 T cells in vitro
Project description:The mechanisms that regulate T cell quiescence are poorly understood. We report that tuberous sclerosis complex 1 (Tsc1) establishes a quiescent program in naïve T cells by controlling cell size, cell cycle entry, and responses to T cell receptor stimulation. Loss of quiescence predisposed Tsc1-deficient T cells to apoptosis that depleted conventional T cells and invariant natural killer T cells. Loss of Tsc1 function dampened in vivo immune responses to bacterial infection. Tsc1-deficient T cells exhibited increased mTORC1 but diminished mTORC2 activities, with mTORC1 activation essential for the disruption of immune homeostasis. Therefore, Tsc1-dependent control of mTOR is crucial in establishing naïve T cell quiescence to facilitate adaptive immune function. Naïve CD4 and CD8 T cells from wild-type and Tsc1-deficient mice (in triplicates each group) were stimulated with or without TCR signaling. RNA was analyzed by microarrays. WT/KO for 0 and 4 hr for CD4 (triplicates), and WT/KO for 0 hr for CD8 (duplicates).