Gene expression is stable in a complete CIB1 knockout keratinocyte model

Elias Imahorn,Magomet Aushev,Sven Cichon,Julia Reichelt,Peter H Itin,Bettina Burger,Stefan Herms,Per Hoffmann

doi:10.1038/s41598-020-71889-9

Abstract

Epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV) is a genodermatosis characterized by the inability of keratinocytes to control cutaneous β-HPV infection and a high risk for non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). Bi-allelic loss of function variants in TMC6, TMC8, and CIB1 predispose to EV. The correlation between these proteins and β-HPV infection is unclear. Its elucidation will advance the understanding of HPV control in human keratinocytes and development of NMSC. We generated a cell culture model by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated deletion of CIB1 to study the function of CIB1 in keratinocytes. Nine CIB1 knockout and nine mock control clones were generated originating from a human keratinocyte line. We observed small changes in gene expression as a result of CIB1 knockout, which is consistent with the clearly defined phenotype of EV patients. This suggests that the function of human CIB1 in keratinocytes is limited and involves the restriction of β-HPV. The presented model is useful to investigate CIB1 interaction with β-HPV in future studies.

Highlights

Epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV) is a genodermatosis characterized by the inability of keratinocytes to control cutaneous β-HPV infection and a high risk for non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC)
The human keratinocyte line N Kc2115 was genetically analyzed to confirm its suitability for the presented project
The presented study on a keratinocyte line with a complete CIB1 knockout showed a slight effect of CIB1 deficiency on expression of other genes

Summary

Introduction

Epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV) is a genodermatosis characterized by the inability of keratinocytes to control cutaneous β-HPV infection and a high risk for non-melanoma skin cancer (NMSC). Bi-allelic loss of function variants in TMC6, TMC8, and CIB1 predispose to EV The correlation between these proteins and β-HPV infection is unclear. We observed small changes in gene expression as a result of CIB1 knockout, which is consistent with the clearly defined phenotype of EV patients. This suggests that the function of human CIB1 in keratinocytes is limited and involves the restriction of β-HPV. TMC8 was hypothesized to switch the cellular response to TNF-α from pro-apoptotic to pro-survival combined with NF-κB activation[13,14] Such changes could not be confirmed in keratinocytes from EV patients or in in vitro s tudies[7].

Methods

Results

Conclusion