Dataset Information

Aging weakens Th17 cell pathogenicity and ameliorates experimental autoimmune uveitis in mice.

ABSTRACT: Aging-induced changes in the immune system are associated with a higher incidence of infection and vaccination failure. Lymph nodes, which filter the lymph to identify and fight infections, play a central role in this process. However, careful characterization of the impact of aging on lymph nodes and associated autoimmune diseases is lacking. We combined single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) with flow cytometry to delineate the immune cell atlas of cervical draining lymph nodes (CDLNs) of both young and old mice with or without experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU). We found extensive and complicated changes in the cellular constituents of CDLNs during aging. When confronted with autoimmune challenges, old mice developed milder EAU compared to young mice. Within this EAU process, we highlighted that the pathogenicity of T helper 17 cells (Th17) was dampened, as shown by reduced GM-CSF secretion in old mice. The mitigated secretion of GM-CSF contributed to alleviation of IL-23 secretion by antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and may, in turn, weaken APCs' effects on facilitating the pathogenicity of Th17 cells. Meanwhile, our study further unveiled that aging downregulated GM-CSF secretion through reducing both the transcript and protein levels of IL-23R in Th17 cells from CDLNs. Overall, aging altered immune cell responses, especially through toning down Th17 cells, counteracting EAU challenge in old mice.

SUBMITTER: Li H

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9095810 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Aging weakens Th17 cell pathogenicity and ameliorates experimental autoimmune uveitis in mice.

Li He H Zhu Lei L Wang Rong R Xie Lihui L Ren Jie J Ma Shuai S Zhang Weiqi W Liu Xiuxing X Huang Zhaohao Z Chen Binyao B Li Zhaohuai Z Feng Huyi H Liu Guang-Hui GH Wang Si S Qu Jing J Su Wenru W

Protein & cell 20211108 6

Aging-induced changes in the immune system are associated with a higher incidence of infection and vaccination failure. Lymph nodes, which filter the lymph to identify and fight infections, play a central role in this process. However, careful characterization of the impact of aging on lymph nodes and associated autoimmune diseases is lacking. We combined single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) with flow cytometry to delineate the immune cell atlas of cervical draining lymph nodes (CDLNs) of both ...[more]

PMID: 34748200

Similar Datasets

Project description:PurposeThe purpose of this study was to explore the underlying mechanism that Th17-like T follicular helper cells (Tfh) orchestrated by STING signaling have a pathogenic role in experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU).MethodsThe differences of transcriptome and gene ontology (GO) pathway of Tfh between EAU and control mice were analyzed by single-cell RNA sequence (scRNA-seq) and bulk RNA sequence. Additionally, draining lymph nodes (DLNs) were extracted to verify the expression of IL-17A and IFN-γ in Tfh from EAU and control mice by flow cytometry. Then, the scRNA-seq and flow cytometry were used to explore the different proportion of Tfh between STING deficiency (Sting-/-) mice and wild type (WT) mice. In vitro, naïve CD4+ T cells were isolated from Sting-/- mice and WT mice to induce the Tfh under the induction condition. In addition, flow cytometry was used to detect the different induction ratio and the IL-17A expression between 2 groups of naïve CD4+ T cells.ResultsCompared with control mice, marked increase of Tfh was observed in EAU, accompanied by elevated levels of Th1 and Th17 cells. Moreover, Th17-related genes, such as Rorc, Il22, Il23r, Il17a, and Il17f, and the corresponding GO pathways were upregulated in Tfh from EAU. The scRNA-seq showed that a higher proportion of Tfh was observed in the DLNs from Sting-/- mice than WT mice, which was verified by flow cytometry. When STING was knocked out, the Tfh was characterized with upregulated Th17-related phenotype in vivo, and there was a higher induction ratio of Tfh whose IL-17A expression was significantly increased in vitro. Notably, the STING expression of CD4+ T cells was downregulated in the EAU. STING-deficient EAU mice displayed more severe retinal inflammation, characterized by massive infiltration of CD4+ T cells, including Th1 and Th17 subsets. Importantly, treatment with a STING agonist alleviated inflammation of EAU.ConclusionsTh17-like Tfh cells play a pathogenic role in the EAU. STING deficiency promotes the differentiation and phenotypic transformation of Th17-like Tfh cells, exacerbating the inflammatory response in EAU. These findings highlight the potential of targeting STING to modulate Tfh cells as a therapeutic strategy for uveitis.

Dataset Information

Aging weakens Th17 cell pathogenicity and ameliorates experimental autoimmune uveitis in mice.

Publications

Aging weakens Th17 cell pathogenicity and ameliorates experimental autoimmune uveitis in mice.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets