Project description:The phagocytic clearance of apoptotic cells, termed efferocytosis, is essential for both tissue homeostasis and tissue health during cell death-inducing treatments. Failure to efficiently clear apoptotic cells augment the risk of pathological inflammation and has been linked to a myriad of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Although past studies have elucidated local molecular signals that regulate homeostatic efferocytosis in a tissue, whether signals arising distally also regulate homeostatic efferocytosis remains elusive. Interestingly, clinical evidence suggests that prolonged use of broad-spectrum antibiotics is associated with an increased risk of autoimmune and inflammatory disease development. We therefore hypothesized that intestinal microbes produce molecular signals that regulate efferocytotic ability in tissue phagocytes beyond the intestines. Here, we find that macrophages, the body’s professional phagocyte, display impaired efferocytosis in the peritoneum of broad-spectrum antibiotics (ABX)-treated, vancomycin-treated, and germ-free mice in vivo, the latter of which could be rescued by fecal microbiota transplantation. Mechanistically, the microbiota-derived short-chain fatty acid butyrate directly boosted efferocytosis efficiency and capacity in mouse and human macrophages, with both intestinal and local delivery of butyrate capable of rescuing ABX-induced large peritoneal macrophage (LPM) efferocytosis defects. Bulk mRNA sequencing of butyrate-treated primary macrophages in vitro and single cell mRNA sequencing of LPMs isolated from ABX-treated and butyrate-rescued mice revealed specific regulation of efferocytosis-supportive transcriptional programs. Specifically, we found that the efferocytosis receptor T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain containing 4 (TIM-4, Timd4) was downregulated in LPMs of ABX-treated mice which was rescued by oral butyrate and that TIM-4 was required for the butyrate-induced enhancement of LPM efferocytosis capacity in vivo. Strikingly, LPM efferocytosis was impaired well-beyond withdrawal of ABX and, importantly, ABX-treated mice exhibited significantly worse disease in a mouse model of system lupus erythematosus. Collectively, our results demonstrate that homeostatic efferocytosis relies on distal molecular signals and suggest that a defect in homeostatic efferocytosis may contribute to the clinically observed link between broad-spectrum antibiotics use and inflammatory disease.
Project description:The clearance of apoptotic cells, termed efferocytosis, is essential for tissue homeostasis and prevention of autoimmunity. Although past studies have elucidated local molecular signals that regulate homeostatic efferocytosis1 in a tissue, whether signals arising distally also regulate homeostatic efferocytosis remains elusive. Here, we find that large peritoneal macrophages (LPMs) display impaired efferocytosis in broad-spectrum antibiotics (ABX)-treated, vancomycin-treated, and germ-free mice in vivo. Mechanistically, the microbiota-derived short-chain fatty acid butyrate directly boosted efferocytosis efficiency/capacity in mouse and human macrophages, and rescued ABX-induced LPM efferocytosis defects in vivo. Bulk mRNA sequencing of butyrate-treated macrophages in vitro and single cell mRNA sequencing of LPMs isolated from ABX-treated and butyrate-rescued mice revealed regulation of efferocytosis-supportive transcriptional programs. Specifically, we found that the efferocytosis receptor T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain containing 4 (TIM-4, Timd4) was downregulated in LPMs of ABX-treated mice but rescued by oral butyrate and TIM-4 was required for the butyrate-induced enhancement of LPM efferocytosis capacity. LPM efferocytosis was impaired beyond withdrawal of ABX and ABX-treated mice exhibited significantly worse disease in a mouse model of lupus. Our results demonstrate that homeostatic efferocytosis relies on distal metabolic signals and suggest that defective homeostatic efferocytosis may explain link between ABX use and inflammatory disease.
Project description:The clearance of apoptotic cells, termed efferocytosis, is essential for tissue homeostasis and prevention of autoimmunity. Although past studies have elucidated local molecular signals that regulate homeostatic efferocytosis1 in a tissue, whether signals arising distally also regulate homeostatic efferocytosis remains elusive. Here, we find that large peritoneal macrophages (LPMs) display impaired efferocytosis in broad-spectrum antibiotics (ABX)-treated, vancomycin-treated, and germ-free mice in vivo. Mechanistically, the microbiota-derived short-chain fatty acid butyrate directly boosted efferocytosis efficiency/capacity in mouse and human macrophages, and rescued ABX-induced LPM efferocytosis defects in vivo. Bulk mRNA sequencing of butyrate-treated macrophages in vitro and single cell mRNA sequencing of LPMs isolated from ABX-treated and butyrate-rescued mice revealed regulation of efferocytosis-supportive transcriptional programs. Specifically, we found that the efferocytosis receptor T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain containing 4 (TIM-4, Timd4) was downregulated in LPMs of ABX-treated mice but rescued by oral butyrate and TIM-4 was required for the butyrate-induced enhancement of LPM efferocytosis capacity. LPM efferocytosis was impaired beyond withdrawal of ABX and ABX-treated mice exhibited significantly worse disease in a mouse model of lupus. Our results demonstrate that homeostatic efferocytosis relies on distal metabolic signals and suggest that defective homeostatic efferocytosis may explain link between ABX use and inflammatory disease.
Project description:Apoptotic cell clearance (efferocytosis), a process essential for organismal homeostasis, is performed by phagocytes that inhabit a wide range of environments, including physiologic hypoxia. Here, we find macrophages, the predominant tissue-resident phagocyte, display enhanced efferocytosis under chronic hypoxia, characterized by increased internalization and accelerated degradation of apoptotic cells. Analysis of mRNA and protein programs revealed that chronic hypoxia induces two distinct but complimentary states in macrophages. The first, ‘primed’ state consists of concomitant induction of transcriptional and translational programs broadly associated with metabolism in apoptotic cell-naïve macrophages that persist during efferocytosis. The second, ‘poised’ state consists of transcription, but not translation, of phagocyte function programs in apoptotic cell-naïve macrophages that are subsequently translated during efferocytosis. We discovered that one such primed state consists of the efficient flux of glucose into a noncanonical pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) loop, whereby PPP-derived intermediates cycle back through the PPP to enhance production of NADPH. Mechanistically, we found that PPP-derived NADPH directly supports enhanced efferocytosis under chronic hypoxia via its role in phagolysosomal maturation, while simultaneously maintaining cellular redox homeostasis. Thus, macrophages adapt to chronic hypoxia by adopting states that both support cell fitness and ensure ability to rapidly and safely perform essential homeostatic functions.