2016年6月12日 訊 /生物谷BIOON/ --星形膠質細胞是中樞神經系統中最豐富的細胞類群,它們參與了多種功能,包括調控血腦屏障、代謝調節、神經信號的傳輸以及中樞神經系統的損傷修復。在多發性硬化以及腦膜炎疾病發生過程中,星形膠質細胞也有著重要的影響。星形膠質細胞的功能受到腦部內外的多種分子的調節,鑑定出這些關鍵的分子對於理解星形膠質細胞的功能有著重要的意義。
腸道微生物的代謝產物能夠通過多種方式調節免疫反應,不過,這些分子對於中樞神經系統內的免疫反應有何影響目前研究的還很少。針對以上問題,來自哈佛醫學院的Francisco J Quintana課題組進行了深入研究,相關結果發表在最近一期的《nature medicine》雜誌上。
首先,作者對小鼠進行MOG35–55的注射,誘導其產生腦膜炎。在隨後的轉錄組分析中,作者發現腦膜炎發病小鼠的星形膠質細胞中有1千多種基因的表達發生了變化。通過聚類分析,他們發現其中大部分屬於IFN-I誘導產生的基因。
I型幹擾素對於炎症反應具有重要的調節作用。作者製備了能夠人為敲低IFNR1(I型幹擾素受體基因)的慢病毒,並將其注射入誘導產生腦膜炎的小鼠腦部。結果顯示:IFNR1的下調使得小鼠腦膜炎疾病嚴重程度上升。
進一步,作者發現IFNR1的下調還會導致免疫調節轉錄因子aryl hydrocarbon receptor(AHR)以及其靶基因Cyp1b1的表達量的下降。與此相符,作者通過體外實驗證明IFN的刺激AHR的上調。這些數據表明IFN-I的信號能夠提高AHR信號並限制中樞神經系統的炎症反應強度。
之後,作者檢測了IFN受體下遊的信號激活情況。結果顯示,IFN對星形膠質細胞的刺激能夠上調AHR基因的表達。
接下來,為了研究AHR的表達是否與中樞神經系統炎症的緩解有關,作者構建了星形膠質細胞特異性AHR敲除小鼠。之後同樣進行了腦膜炎的誘導。結果顯示,相比對照組小鼠,AHR敲除小鼠的病情更為惡化。為了研究AHR是如何調節炎症反應的,作者進行了染色質免疫共沉澱試驗,結果顯示,在AHR缺失的情況下,NFKB與下遊順式作用元件的結合能力得到了提升,這說明AHR能夠負向調節NFKB的活性。
最後,作者發現腸道微生物通過分解色氨酸可以生成多種AHR的配體物質。這些配體能夠介導IFN-I引發的炎症負向調節活性。(生物谷Bioon.com)
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doi:10.1038/nm.4106
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Type I interferons and microbial metabolites of tryptophan modulate astrocyte activity and central nervous system inflammation via the aryl hydrocarbon receptor
Veit Rothhammer, Ivan D Mascanfroni, Lukas Bunse, Maisa C Takenaka, Jessica E Kenison, Lior Mayo, Chun-Cheih Chao, Bonny Patel, Raymond Yan, Manon Blain, Jorge I Alvarez, Hania Kébir, Niroshana Anandasabapathy5, Guillermo Izquierdo, Steffen Jung, Nikolaus Obholzer, Nathalie Pochet, Clary B Clish, Marco Prinz, Alexandre Prat, Jack Antel & Francisco J Quintana
Astrocytes have important roles in the central nervous system (CNS) during health and disease. Through genome-wide analyses we detected a transcriptional response to type I interferons (IFN-Is) in astrocytes during experimental CNS autoimmunity and also in CNS lesions from patients with multiple sclerosis (MS). IFN-I signaling in astrocytes reduces inflammation and experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) disease scores via the ligand-activated transcription factor aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) and the suppressor of cytokine signaling 2 (SOCS2). The anti-inflammatory effects of nasally administered interferon (IFN)-b are partly mediated by AHR. Dietary tryptophan is metabolized by the gut microbiota into AHR agonists that have an effect on astrocytes to limit CNS inflammation. EAE scores were increased following ampicillin treatment during the recovery phase, and CNS inflammation was reduced in antibiotic-treated mice by supplementation with the tryptophan metabolites indole, indoxyl-
3-sulfate, indole-3-propionic acid and indole-3-aldehyde, or the bacterial enzyme tryptophanase. In individuals with MS, the circulating levels of AHR agonists were decreased. These findings suggest that IFN-Is produced in the CNS function in combination with metabolites derived from dietary tryptophan by the gut flora to activate AHR signaling in astrocytes and suppress CNS inflammation.