Project description:The mammalian target of rapamycin complex 1 (mTORC1) regulates activation of immune cells and cellular energy metabolism. Although glycolysis has been linked to immune functions, the mechanisms by which glycolysis regulates NLRP3 inflammasome activation remain unclear. Here, we demonstrate that mTORC1-induced glycolysis provides an essential mechanism for NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Moreover, we demonstrate that hexokinase 1 (HK1)-dependent glycolysis, under the regulation of mTORC1, represents a critical metabolic pathway for NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Downregulation of glycolysis by inhibition of Raptor/mTORC1 or HK1 suppressed both pro-IL-1β maturation and caspase-1 activation in macrophages in response to LPS and ATP. These results suggest that upregulation of HK1-dependent glycolysis by mTORC1 regulates NLRP3 inflammasome activation.
Project description:BackgroundPersistent inflammation dysregulation and cognitive decline have been associated with several trauma- and stress-related disorders such as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety disorder. Despite the abundant discoveries of neuroinflammation in such disorders, the underlying mechanisms still remain unclear.MethodWild-type and Nlrp3-/- mice were exposed to the electric foot shocks in the contextual fear memory paradigm. Three hours after the electric foot shocks, activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome was investigated through immunoblotting and ELISA. Microglia were isolated and analyzed by quantitative real-time PCR. Hippocampal tissues were collected 3 h and 72 h after the electric foot shocks and subjected to RNA sequencing. MCC950 was administrated to mice via intraperitoneal (i.p.) injection. Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-ra) and interleukin-1β (IL-1β) were delivered via intracerebroventricular (i.c.v.) infusion. Contextual fear responses of mice were tested on 4 consecutive days (test days 1-4) starting at 48 h after the electric foot shocks. Anxiety-like behaviors were examined by elevated plus maze and open-field test.ResultsWe demonstrated that, in the contextual fear memory paradigm, the NLRP3 inflammasome was activated 3 h after electric foot shocks. We also found an upregulation in toll-like receptor and RIG-I-like receptor signaling, and a decrease in postsynaptic density (PSD) related proteins, such as PSD95 and Shank proteins, in the hippocampus 72 h after the electric foot shocks, indicating an association between neuroinflammation and PSD protein loss after stress encounter. Meanwhile, Nlrp3 knockout could significantly prevent both neuroinflammation and loss of PSD-related proteins, suggesting a possible protective role of NLRP3 deletion during this process. For further studies, we demonstrated that both genetic knockout and pharmaceutical inhibition of the NLRP3 inflammasome remarkably enhanced the extinction of contextual fear memory and attenuated anxiety-like behavior caused by electric foot shocks. Moreover, cytokine IL-1β administration inhibited the extinction of contextual fear memory. Meanwhile, IL-1ra significantly enhanced the extinction of contextual fear memory and attenuated anxiety-like behavior.ConclusionTaken together, our data revealed the pivotal role of NLRP3 inflammasome activation in the regulation of fear memory and the development of PTSD and anxiety disorder, providing a novel target for the clinical treatment of such disorders.
Project description:The NLR family pyrin domain-containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome is triggered by various stimuli. Whether the NLRP3 inflammasome is activated during the monocyte clearing of aged or damaged erythrocytes is unknown. This work aimed to determine whether the NLRP3 inflammasome is activated during the THP-1 cell engulfing of aged erythrocytes. In the study, THP-1 cells were treated with PMA and then coincubated with untreated red blood cells (RBCs), 42 °C-treated RBCs, immunoglobulin G (IgG) anti-D-sensitized RBCs, Rhnull/Rhmod RBC sample, hemoglobin, and RBC ghost. The activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and production of some proinflammatory cytokines were determined using immunoblotting, cytometric bead array, and digital PCR. An NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitor was also used to evaluate the alteration of the NLRP3 activation and RBC clearance rate. The untreated RBCs, 42 °C-incubated RBCs, IgG-opsonized RBCs, Rhnull/Rhmod RBCs, RBC ghosts, and hemoglobin induced the THP-1-cell-mediated activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and the production of inflammatory cytokines. The RBC clearance rate exhibited a positive correlation with the expression of proinflammatory cytokines. The NLRP3 inflammasome inhibitor reduced the NLRP3 activation and RBC phagocytosis rate. The NLRP3 inflammasome was activated during the clearance of the aged erythrocytes through unopsonized and opsonized pathways. However, the mechanism of such phenomenon needs to be further elucidated. Such mechanism may provide new insight into the assessment of the safety of transfusing long-storage RBC based on cytokine levels.
Project description:Activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome and subsequent maturation of IL-1β have been implicated in acute lung injury (ALI), resulting in inflammation and fibrosis. We investigated the role of vimentin, a type III intermediate filament, in this process using three well-characterized murine models of ALI known to require NLRP3 inflammasome activation. We demonstrate that central pathophysiologic events in ALI (inflammation, IL-1β levels, endothelial and alveolar epithelial barrier permeability, remodelling and fibrosis) are attenuated in the lungs of Vim(-/-) mice challenged with LPS, bleomycin and asbestos. Bone marrow chimeric mice lacking vimentin have reduced IL-1β levels and attenuated lung injury and fibrosis following bleomycin exposure. Furthermore, decreased active caspase-1 and IL-1β levels are observed in vitro in Vim(-/-) and vimentin-knockdown macrophages. Importantly, we show direct protein-protein interaction between NLRP3 and vimentin. This study provides insights into lung inflammation and fibrosis and suggests that vimentin may be a key regulator of the NLRP3 inflammasome.
Project description:The cytosolic pattern recognition receptor NLRP3 senses host-derived danger signals and certain microbe-derived products in both humans and rodents. NLRP3 activation assembles an inflammasome complex that contains the adapter proteins ASC and caspase-1, whose activation triggers the maturation and release of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1β and IL-18. S5 phosphorylation of NLRP3 prevents its oligomerization and activation, whereas dephosphorylation of this residue by the phosphatase PP2A allows NLRP3 activation. However, the protein kinase that mediates NLRP3 S5 phosphorylation is unknown. In this study, we show that AKT associates with NLRP3 and phosphorylates it on S5, limiting NLRP3 oligomerization. This phosphorylation event also stabilizes NLRP3 by reducing its ubiquitination on lysine 496, which inhibits its proteasome-mediated degradation by the E3 ligase Trim31. Pharmacologic manipulation of AKT kinase activity reciprocally modulates NLRP3 inflammasome-mediated IL-1β production. Inhibition of AKT reduced IL-1β production following the i.p. injection of LPS into mice. We propose that AKT, Trim31, and PP2A together modulate NLRP3 protein levels and the tendency to oligomerize, thereby setting a tightly regulated threshold for NLRP3 activation.
Project description:Inflammasomes are important multiprotein regulatory complexes of innate immunity and have recently emerged as playing divergent roles in numerous inflammation-associated cancers. Among these include gastric cancer (GC), the third leading cause of cancer-associated death worldwide, and we have previously discovered a pro-tumorigenic role for the key inflammasome adaptor apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a CARD (ASC) in the spontaneous genetic gp130 F/F mouse model for GC. However, the identity of the specific pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) that activate tumor-promoting inflammasomes during GC is unknown. Here, we investigated the role of the best-characterized inflammasome-associated PRR, nucleotide-binding domain, and leucine-rich repeat containing receptor, pyrin domain-containing (NLRP) 3, in GC. In gastric tumors of gp130 F/F mice, although NLRP3 expression was elevated at the mRNA (qPCR) and protein (immunohistochemistry) levels, genetic ablation of NLRP3 in gp130 F/F:Nlrp3 -/- mice did not alleviate the development of gastric tumors. Similarly, cellular processes associated with tumorigenesis in the gastric mucosa, namely, proliferation, apoptosis, and inflammation, were comparable between gp130 F/F and gp130 F/F:Nlrp3 -/- mice. Furthermore, inflammasome activation levels, determined by immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry for cleaved Caspase-1, which along with ASC is another integral component of inflammasome complexes, were unchanged in gp130 F/F and gp130 F/F:Nlrp3 -/- gastric tumors. We also observed variable NLRP3 expression levels (mRNA and protein) among independent GC patient cohorts, and NLRP3 was not prognostic for survival outcomes. Taken together, these data suggest that NLRP3 does not play a major role in promoting inflammasome-driven gastric tumorigenesis, and thus pave the way for further investigations to uncover the key inflammasome-associated PRR implicated in GC.
Project description:It has been previously reported that macrophages may be involved in diabetic nephropathy (DN) development. Furthermore, Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) may participate in macrophage activation and lead to the release of inflammatory mediators. The main aim of the present study was to analyze the association between renal BTK expression and clinical indicators. Moreover, BTK knockout mice were used to establish a diabetic model for further research. The results demonstrated that BTK was activated in the kidneys of patients with DN and was associated with the progression of proteinuria, creatinine levels, estimated glomerular filtration rate and pathological changes in the kidneys of patients with DN. Furthermore, BTK knockout was observed to reduce urinary protein excretion, alleviate renal injury and decrease renal inflammation in diabetic mice. This protection may be attributed to BTK‑induced suppression of the activation of the Nod‑like receptor (NLR) family pyrin domain containing 3 inflammasome. Collectively, it has been demonstrated in the present study that BTK may be a potential target for DN treatment.
Project description:The NLRP3 inflammasome mediates the production of proinflammatory cytokines and initiates inflammatory cell death. Although NLRP3 is essential for innate immunity, aberrant NLRP3 inflammasome activation contributes to a wide variety of inflammatory diseases. Understanding the pathways that control NLRP3 activation will help develop strategies to treat these diseases. Here we identify WNK1 as a negative regulator of the NLRP3 inflammasome. Macrophages deficient in WNK1 protein or kinase activity have increased NLRP3 activation and pyroptosis compared with control macrophages. Mice with conditional knockout of WNK1 in macrophages have increased IL-1β production in response to NLRP3 stimulation compared with control mice. Mechanistically, WNK1 tempers NLRP3 activation by balancing intracellular Cl- and K+ concentrations during NLRP3 activation. Collectively, this work shows that the WNK1 pathway has a critical function in suppressing NLRP3 activation and suggests that pharmacological inhibition of this pathway to treat hypertension might have negative clinical implications.
Project description:Activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome is crucial for immune defense, but improper and excessive activation causes inflammatory diseases. We previously reported that Pyk2 is essential for NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Here we show that the Src-family kinases (SFKs)-Cbl axis plays a pivotal role in suppressing NLRP3 inflammasome activation in response to stimulation by nigericin or ATP, as assessed using gene knockout and gene knockdown cells, dominant active/negative mutants, and pharmacological inhibition. We reveal that the phosphorylation of Cbl is regulated by SFKs, and that phosphorylation of Cbl at Tyr371 suppresses NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Mechanistically, Cbl decreases the level of phosphorylated Pyk2 (p-Pyk2) through ubiquitination-mediated proteasomal degradation and reduces mitochondrial ROS (mtROS) production by contributing to the maintenance of mitochondrial size. The lower levels of p-Pyk2 and mtROS dampen NLRP3 inflammasome activation. In vivo, inhibition of Cbl with an analgesic drug, hydrocotarnine, increases inflammasome-mediated IL-18 secretion in the colon, and protects mice from dextran sulphate sodium-induced colitis. Together, our novel findings provide new insights into the role of the SFK-Cbl axis in suppressing NLRP3 inflammasome activation and identify a novel clinical utility of hydrocortanine for disease treatment.
Project description:Activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome by microbial ligands or tissue damage requires intracellular generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). We present evidence that macrophage secretion of IL1β upon stimulation with ATP, crystals or LPS is mediated by a rapid increase in the activity of xanthine oxidase (XO), the oxidized form of xanthine dehydrogenase, resulting in the formation of uric acid as well as ROS. We show that XO-derived ROS, but not uric acid, is the trigger for IL1β release and that XO blockade results in impaired IL1β and caspase1 secretion. XO is localized to both cytoplasmic and mitochondrial compartments and acts upstream to the PI3K-AKT signalling pathway that results in mitochondrial ROS generation. This pathway represents a mechanism for regulating NLRP3 inflammasome activation that may have therapeutic implications in inflammatory diseases.