Reducing FLI1 levels in the MRL/lpr lupus mouse model impacts T cell function by modulating glycosphingolipid metabolism.

Autor: Erin Morris Richard, Thirumagal Thiyagarajan, Marlene A Bunni, Fahmin Basher, Patrick O Roddy, Leah J Siskind, Paul J Nietert, Tamara K Nowling
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2013
Předmět:
Zdroj: PLoS ONE, Vol 8, Iss 9, p e75175 (2013)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1932-6203
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0075175
Popis: Systemic Lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease caused, in part, by abnormalities in cells of the immune system including B and T cells. Genetically reducing globally the expression of the ETS transcription factor FLI1 by 50% in two lupus mouse models significantly improves disease measures and survival through an unknown mechanism. In this study we analyze the effects of reducing FLI1 in the MRL/lpr lupus prone model on T cell function. We demonstrate that adoptive transfer of MRL/lpr Fli1(+/+) or Fli1(+/-) T cells and B cells into Rag1-deficient mice results in significantly decreased serum immunoglobulin levels in animals receiving Fli1(+/-) lupus T cells compared to animals receiving Fli1(+/+) lupus T cells regardless of the genotype of co-transferred lupus B cells. Ex vivo analyses of MRL/lpr T cells demonstrated that Fli1(+/-) T cells produce significantly less IL-4 during early and late disease and exhibited significantly decreased TCR-specific activation during early disease compared to Fli1(+/+) T cells. Moreover, the Fli1(+/-) T cells expressed significantly less neuraminidase 1 (Neu1) message and decreased NEU activity during early disease and significantly decreased levels of glycosphingolipids during late disease compared to Fli1(+/+) T cells. FLI1 dose-dependently activated the Neu1 promoter in mouse and human T cell lines. Together, our results suggest reducing FLI1 in lupus decreases the pathogenicity of T cells by decreasing TCR-specific activation and IL-4 production in part through the modulation of glycosphingolipid metabolism. Reducing the expression of FLI1 or targeting the glycosphingolipid metabolic pathway in lupus may serve as a therapeutic approach to treating lupus.
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