The Transcription Factors TFEB and TFE3 Link the FLCN-AMPK Signaling Axis to Innate Immune Response and Pathogen Resistance.

ABSTRACT: TFEB and TFE3 are transcriptional regulators of the innate immune response, but the mechanisms regulating their activation upon pathogen infection are poorly elucidated. Using C. elegans and mammalian models, we report that the master metabolic modulator 5'-AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and its negative regulator Folliculin (FLCN) act upstream of TFEB/TFE3 in the innate immune response, independently of the mTORC1 signaling pathway. In nematodes, loss of FLCN or overexpression of AMPK confers pathogen resistance via activation of TFEB/TFE3-dependent antimicrobial genes, whereas ablation of total AMPK activity abolishes this phenotype. Similarly, in mammalian cells, loss of FLCN or pharmacological activation of AMPK induces TFEB/TFE3-dependent pro-inflammatory cytokine expression. Imp

SUBMITTER: El-Houjeiri L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7457953 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature