Project description:Type-2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) promote anti-helminth responses and contribute to allergies. Though Bcl11b has been previously considered a T-lineage identity transcription factor (TF) that restrains the innate-cell genetic programs, we report here that Bcl11b is highly expressed in mature ILC2s and acts upstream of the key ILC2 TFs Gfi1, Gata-3, and of IL-33 receptor IL1rl1 (T1ST2). Additionally, Bcl11b-/- ILC2s de-repressed Rorγt, Ahr and IL-23 receptor, normally expressed in type-3 ILCs (ILC3s). Consequently, Bcl11b-/- ILC2s lost ILC2 functions and gained ILC3 functions, expanding in response to the protease allergen papain, however producing IL-17 and IL-22, and not IL-5 and IL-13, causing lung neutrophilia rather than eosinophilia, and diminished mucus production. Our results broaden Bcl11b's role from a T-cell only TF, and establishes that Bcl11b sustains mature ILC2 genetic and functional programs and lineage fidelity through positive regulation of essential ILC2 TFs and negative regulation of pivotal ILC3 TFs. RNA-seq analysis on sorted ILC2s from the mLNs of Bcl11bF/F Cre-ERT2 and wildtype mice at steady state following tamoxifen mediated deletion of Bcl11b
Project description:Type-2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) promote anti-helminth responses and contribute to allergies. Though Bcl11b has been previously considered a T-lineage identity transcription factor (TF) that restrains the innate-cell genetic programs, we report here that Bcl11b is highly expressed in mature ILC2s and acts upstream of the key ILC2 TFs Gfi1, Gata-3, and of IL-33 receptor IL1rl1 (T1ST2). Additionally, Bcl11b-/- ILC2s de-repressed Rorγt, Ahr and IL-23 receptor, normally expressed in type-3 ILCs (ILC3s). Consequently, Bcl11b-/- ILC2s lost ILC2 functions and gained ILC3 functions, expanding in response to the protease allergen papain, however producing IL-17 and IL-22, and not IL-5 and IL-13, causing lung neutrophilia rather than eosinophilia, and diminished mucus production. Our results broaden Bcl11b's role from a T-cell only TF, and establishes that Bcl11b sustains mature ILC2 genetic and functional programs and lineage fidelity through positive regulation of essential ILC2 TFs and negative regulation of pivotal ILC3 TFs.
Project description:The zinc finger transcription factor, Bcl11b, is expressed in T cells and group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) among hematopoietic cells. In early T-lineage cells, Bcl11b directly binds and represses endogenous E protein antagonist, Id2, expression to prevent pro-T cell from adopting an innate-like fate. In contrast, ILC2s co-express both Bcl11b and Id2. Here, to address this contradiction, we have directly compared Bcl11b action mechanisms in pro-T cells and ILC2s. We found that Bcl11b binds to distinctive genomic regions across the genome with cell-type specific motif preferences. Bcl11b occupies functionally different sites in lineage specific way and controls totally different sets of target genes, while both of cell types use the same distal enhancer region to control timing of Bcl11b activation. In addition, Bcl11b seems to have cell-type specific post-translational modifications and to organize differential protein complexes. Therefore, despite pro-T cells and ILC2s share Bcl11b for their optimal development and function, Bcl11b is able to regulate substantially different target genes.
Project description:We recently found that a unique subset of innate-like γδ T cells develop from the DN2a-stage of the fetal thymus independent of the zinc-finger transcription factor B-cell leukemia/lymphoma 11b (Bcl11b). Herein we characterized these Bcl11b-independent γδ T cells in the periphery as CD5−NK1.1+ and Granzyme B+, and show that they are capable of producing interferon (IFN)-γ upon T cell receptor stimulation without Ca2+ influx. In wild-type mice, these cells were sparse in lymphoid tissues but abundant in non-lymphoid tissues such as the liver. Bcl11b-independent CD5−NK1.1+ γδ T cells appeared and contributed to early protection before Bcl11b-dependent CD5+NK1.1− γδT cells following Listeria monocytogenes infection, recapitulating their appearance during thymic development.
Project description:Innate lymphoid cells (ILC) are tissue-resident effector cells with important roles in tissue homeostasis, protective immunity and inflammatory disease. Here we investigated the role of the transcription factor Bcl6 in small intestinal innate lymphoid cells. Specifically, we performed single-cell RNA-seq on total small intestine lamina propria ILCs from tamoxifen-treated Id2-CreERT2 ROSA26-tdRFP Bcl6-fl/fl mice and Id2-CreERT2 ROSA26-tdRFP controls.
Project description:Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) comprise three groups of recently identified tissue resident immune cell lineages that play critical roles in protective immune responses and tissue homeostasis. While significant progress has been made in defining the key protein mediators of ILC development and function, how cis-acting epigenetic regulatory elements or long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate ILCs is unknown. Herein, we describe a cis-regulatory element demarcated by a novel lncRNA that controls the maturation, function and lineage identity of group 1 ILCs while being dispensable for early ILC development and homeostasis of mature ILC2s and ILC3s. We named this ILC1-restricted lncRNA Rroid. The Rroid locus controls the functional specification and lineage identity of ILC1 by promoting chromatin accessibility and STAT5 deposition at the promoter of its neighboring gene, Id2, in response to the ILC1-specific cytokine IL-15.
Project description:Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) comprise three groups of recently identified tissue resident immune cell lineages that play critical roles in protective immune responses and tissue homeostasis. While significant progress has been made in defining the key protein mediators of ILC development and function, how cis-acting epigenetic regulatory elements or long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) regulate ILCs is unknown. Herein, we describe a cis-regulatory element demarcated by a novel lncRNA that controls the maturation, function and lineage identity of group 1 ILCs while being dispensable for early ILC development and homeostasis of mature ILC2s and ILC3s. We named this ILC1-restricted lncRNA Rroid. The Rroid locus controls the functional specification and lineage identity of ILC1 by promoting chromatin accessibility and STAT5 deposition at the promoter of its neighboring gene, Id2, in response to the ILC1-specific cytokine IL-15.
Project description:During T cell development, multipotent progenitors relinquish competence for other fates and commit to the T cell lineage by turning on Bcl11b, which encodes a transcription factor. To clarify lineage commitment mechanisms, we followed developing T cells at the single-cell level using Bcl11b knock-in fluorescent reporter mice. Notch signaling and Notch activated transcription factors collaborate to activate Bcl11b expression irrespectively of Notch-dependent proliferation. These inputs work via three distinct, asynchronous mechanisms: an early locus âpoisingâ function dependent on TCF-1 and GATA-3, a stochastic-permissivity function dependent on Notch signaling, and a separate amplitude-control function dependent on Runx1, a factor already present in multipotent progenitors. Despite their necessity for Bcl11b activation, these inputs act in a stage specific manner, providing a multitiered mechanism for developmental gene regulation. Two sets of samples were generated from DN T-cell sub-populations derived from culture of bone marrow progenitors from mice containing a knock-in Bcl11b-YFP reporter
Project description:GATA-binding protein 3 (GATA3) acts as the master transcription factor for type 2 T helper (Th2) cell differentiation and function. However, it is still elusive how GATA3 function is precisely regulated in Th2 cells. Here, we report that the transcription factor B cell lymphoma 11b (Bcl11b), a previously unknown component of GATA3 transcriptional complex, is involved in GATA3-mediated gene regulation. Bcl11b binds to GATA3 through protein-protein interaction, and they co-localize at many important cis-regulatory elements in Th2 cells. The expression of type 2 cytokines, including IL-4, IL-5 and IL-13, is up-regulated in Bcl11b-deficient Th2 cells both in vitro and in vivo; such up-regulation is completely GATA3-dependent. Genome-wide analyses of Bcl11b- and GATA3-regulated gene (from RNA-Seq), co-binding pattern (from ChIP-Seq), and Bcl11b-mediated epigenetic changes (in H3K27ac and DHSs) suggest that GATA3/Bcl11b complex is involved in limiting Th2 gene expression, as well as in inhibiting non-Th2 gene expression. Thus, Bcl11b controls both GATA3-mediated gene activation and repression in Th2 cells.