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Transcriptomic signatures reveal a shift towards an antiinflammatory gene expression profile but also the induction of type-I and type-II interferon signaling networks through aryl hydrocarbon receptor activation in murine macrophages

ABSTRACT: The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) is a ligand-activated transcription factor that regulates a broad range of target genes involved in the xenobiotic response, cell cycle control and circadian rhythm. AhR is constitutively expressed in macrophages, acting as key regulator of cytokine production. While proinflammatory cytokines, i.e., IL-1β, IL-6, IL-12, are suppressed through AhR activation, anti-inflammatory IL-10 is induced. However, the underlying mechanisms of those effects and the importance of the specific ligand structure are not yet completely understood. Therefore, we have compared the global gene expression pattern in activated murine bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMMs) subsequently to exposure with either benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) or indole-3-carbinol (I3C), representing xenobiotic vs. nutritional AhR ligands, respectively, by means of mRNA sequencing. AhR dependency of observed effects was proved using BMMs from AhR-knockout mice. In total, more than 1,000 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) could be mapped, covering a plethora of AhR-modulated effects on basal cellular processes, i.e., transcription and translation, but also immune functions, i.e., antigen presentation, cytokine production, and phagocytosis. Among DEGs were genes that are already known to be regulated by AhR, i.e., Irf1, Ido2, and Cd84. However, we identified DEGs not yet described to be AhR-regulated in macrophages so far, i.e., Slpi, Il12rb1, and Il21r. All six genes likely contribute to shifting the macrophage phenotype from proinflammatory to anti-inflammatory. The majority of DEGs were specific for BaP but not affected through I3C exposure, probably due to higher AhR affinity of BaP in comparison to I3C. Mapping of known aryl hydrocarbon response element (AHRE) sequence motifs in identified DEGs revealed more than 200 genes not possessing any AHRE, and therefore being not eligible for canonical regulation. Bioinformatic approaches modeled a central role of type I and type II interferons in the regulation of those genes. Additionally, RT-qPCR and ELISA confirmed a BaP- and AhR-dependent expressional induction and AhR-dependent secretion of IFN-γ, suggesting a potentially novel auto- or paracrine activation pathway of macrophages.

ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus

PROVIDER: GSE223122 | GEO | 2023/05/14

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Understanding the mechanisms of host macrophage responses to M. tuberculosis (M.tb.) is essential for uncovering potential avenues of intervention to boost host resistance to infection. Macrophage transcriptome profiling revealed M.tb. infection strongly induced expression of several enzymes controlling tryptophan (Trp) catabolism. This included indole 2,3-dioxygenase 1 (IDO1) and tryptophan 2,3-dioxygenase (TDO2), which catalyze the rate-limiting step in the kynurenine pathway, producing ligands for the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR). The AHR and heterodimeric partners AHR nuclear translocator (ARNT) and RELB are robustly expressed, and AHR and RELB levels further increased during infection. Infection enhanced AHR/ARNT and AHR/RELB DNA binding, and stimulated expression of AHR target genes, including that encoding the inflammatory cytokine IL1beta. AHR target gene expression was further enhanced by exogenous kynurenine, and exogenous Trp, kynurenine or synthetic agonist indirubin reduced mycobacterial viability. Comparative expression profiling revealed that AHR ablation diminished expression of numerous genes implicated in innate immune responses, including several cytokines. Notably, AHR depletion reduced expression of IL23A and IL12B transcripts, which encode subunits of interleukin 23 (IL23), a macrophage cytokine that stimulates production of IL22 by innate lymphoid cells. The AHR directly induced IL23A transcription in human and mouse macrophages through near-upstream enhancer regions. Taken together, these findings show that AHR signaling is strongly engaged in Mtb-infected macrophages, and has widespread effects on innate immune responses. Moreover, they reveal a cascade of AHR-driven innate immune signaling, as IL1B (IL-1β) and IL23 stimulate T cell subsets producing IL22, another direct target of AHR transactivation. Gene expression profiling of Mtb-infected THP-1 monocytic cells following siRNA-mediated Aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) knockdown.

Project description:Background: Estrogen receptor (ERα) and aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) are two nuclear receptors involved in regulating gene expression. ERα and AHR are regulated by estradiol(E2) and TCDD respectively. They are also regulated by dietary ligands including 3,3´diindolylmethane (DIM) and resveratrol (RES). DIM is an ERα and AHR agonist, while RES is an ERα agonist and AHR antagonist. Few studies have investigated the impact of RES and DIM on ERα and AHR signaling at a genome-wide level. This study assessed ERα and AHR binding and associated gene expression changes after treatment of MCF-7 human breast cancer cells with DIM, RES, E2, TCDD, and E2+TCDD for 1 hour and 6 hours before ChIP and RNA sequencing respectively. Results: 88% and 86% of the ERα bound sites after RES and DIM overlapped with E2 ERα sites. RES and DIM resulted in 577 and 446 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) respectively compared to 866 after E2. 68% and 62.3% of the DEGs after RES and DIM were closest to an ERα binding site. Motif analysis indicated enrichment for AHRE motif among DIM ERα sites but not among E2 or RES ERα sites. Both DIM and E2+TCDD resulted in greater genome wide binding of AHR than TCDD. DIM and E2+TCDD resulted in 10546 and 8904 AHR and ERα co-occupied sites respectively. While co-occupied sites for both enriched for the AHR and ERE motif among others, DIM mediated co-occupied sites enriched for Tcfcp2l1, Tgif1, Gata3 motifs while E2+TCDD mediated ones enriched for the NF1 and Ppara motifs. Overlap of coregulated DEGs after DIM and E2+TCDD indicated 123 were the same among both with 81 and 85 unique coregulated DEGs respectively. Enrichment analysis indicated that more enrichment terms were different than similar for coregulated genes after E2+TCDD and DIM. Conclusions: AHR activation is responsible for DIM mediated reduced regulation of gene expression by ERα relative to E2 and only a subset of the DEG’s after DIM and RES are ERα targets indicating future studies into other transcription factors regulated by DIM and RES are needed for insights into the regulation of gene expression by these ligands.

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Transcriptomic signatures reveal a shift towards an antiinflammatory gene expression profile but also the induction of type-I and type-II interferon signaling networks through aryl hydrocarbon receptor activation in murine macrophages

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