Interleukin-12 bypasses common gamma-chain signalling in emergency natural killer cell lymphopoiesis.

ABSTRACT: Differentiation and homeostasis of natural killer (NK) cells relies on common gamma-chain (?c)-dependent cytokines, in particular IL-15. Consequently, NK cells do not develop in mice with targeted ?c deletion. Herein we identify an alternative pathway of NK-cell development driven by the proinflammatory cytokine IL-12, which can occur independently of ?c-signalling. In response to viral infection or upon exogenous administration, IL-12 is sufficient to elicit the emergence of a population of CD122⁺CD49b⁺ cells by targeting NK-cell precursors (NKPs) in the bone marrow (BM). We confirm the NK-cell identity of these cells by transcriptome-wide analyses and their ability to eliminate tumour cells. Rather than using the conventional pathway of NK-cell development, IL-12-driven CD122⁺CD49b⁺ cells remain confined to a NK1.1^lowNKp46^low stage, but differentiate into NK1.1⁺NKp46⁺ cells in the presence of ?c-cytokines. Our data reveal an IL-12-driven hard-wired pathway of emergency NK-cell lymphopoiesis bypassing steady-state ?c-signalling.

SUBMITTER: Ohs I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5172358 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature