HBEGF⁺ macrophages in rheumatoid arthritis induce fibroblast invasiveness.

ABSTRACT: Macrophages tailor their function according to the signals found in tissue microenvironments, assuming a wide spectrum of phenotypes. A detailed understanding of macrophage phenotypes in human tissues is limited. Using single-cell RNA sequencing, we defined distinct macrophage subsets in the joints of patients with the autoimmune disease rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which affects ~1% of the population. The subset we refer to as HBEGF⁺ inflammatory macrophages is enriched in RA tissues and is shaped by resident fibroblasts and the cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF). These macrophages promoted fibroblast invasiveness in an epidermal growth factor receptor-dependent manner, indicating that intercellular cross-talk in this inflamed setting reshapes both cell types and contributes to

SUBMITTER: Kuo D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6726376 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature