Regulation Of Inflammatory Gene Expression Research Articles

Chromatin Remodeling Complex PBAF Activates and Represses Inflammatory Genes.

The PBAF chromatin remodeling complex regulates chromatin state and gene transcription in higher eukaryotes. In this work, we studied the role of PBAF in the regulation of NF-κB-and JAK/STAT-dependent activation of inflammatory genes. We performed knockdown of specific module subunit BAF200, which resulted in destruction of the entire PBAF specific module and changed the level of the genes transcription of both pathways. PBAF can be both an activator and a repressor of inflammatory genes. Thus, PBAF is an important regulator of inflammatory gene expression.

CHROMATIN REMODELING COMPLEX PBAF ACTIVATES AND REPRESSES INFLAMMATORY GENES

The PBAF chromatin remodeling complex regulates chromatin state and gene transcription in higher eukaryotes. In this work, we studied the role of PBAF in the regulation of NF–κB-and JAK/STAT-dependent activation of inflammatory genes. We performed knockdown of specific module subunit BAF200 resulted in destruction of the entire PBAF specific module and changed the level of the genes transcription of both pathways. PBAF can be both an activator and a repressor of inflammatory genes. Thus, PBAF is one of the important regulators of inflammatory gene expression.

Histone deacetylase 3 regulates microglial function through histone deacetylation

ABSTRACT As the primary innate immune cells of the brain, microglia respond to damage and disease through pro-inflammatory release of cytokines and neuroinflammatory molecules. Histone acetylation is an activating transcriptional mark that regulates inflammatory gene expression. Inhibition of histone deacetylase 3 (Hdac3) has been utilized in pre-clinical models of depression, stroke, and spinal cord injury to improve recovery following injury, but the molecular mechanisms underlying Hdac3’s regulation of inflammatory gene expression in microglia is not well understood. To address this lack of knowledge, we examined how pharmacological inhibition of Hdac3 in an immortalized microglial cell line (BV2) impacted histone acetylation and gene expression of pro- and anti-inflammatory genes in response to immune challenge with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Flow cytometry and cleavage under tags & release using nuclease (CUT & RUN) revealed that Hdac3 inhibition increases global and promoter-specific histone acetylation, resulting in the release of gene repression at baseline and enhanced responses to LPS. Hdac3 inhibition enhanced neuroprotective functions of microglia in response to LPS through reduced nitric oxide release and increased phagocytosis. The findings suggest Hdac3 serves as a regulator of microglial inflammation, and that inhibition of Hdac3 facilitates the microglial response to inflammation and its subsequent clearing of debris or damaged cells. Together, this work provides new mechanistic insights into therapeutic applications of Hdac3 inhibition which mediate reduced neuroinflammatory insults through microglial response.

Adipose-derived stem cells modulate neuroinflammation and improve functional recovery in chronic constriction injury of the rat sciatic nerve.

Compressive neuropathy, a common chronic traumatic injury of peripheral nerves, leads to variable impairment in sensory and motor function. Clinical symptoms persist in a significant portion of patients despite decompression, with muscle atrophy and persistent neuropathic pain affecting 10%-25% of cases. Excessive inflammation and immune cell infiltration in the injured nerve hinder axon regeneration and functional recovery. Although adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs) have demonstrated neural regeneration and immunomodulatory potential, their specific effects on compressive neuropathy are still unclear. We conducted modified CCI models on adult male Sprague-Dawley rats to induce irreversible neuropathic pain and muscle atrophy in the sciatic nerve. Intraneural ASC injection and nerve decompression were performed. Behavioral analysis, muscle examination, electrophysiological evaluation, and immunofluorescent examination of the injured nerve and associated DRG were conducted to explore axon regeneration, neuroinflammation, and the modulation of inflammatory gene expression. Transplanted ASCs were tracked to investigate potential beneficial mechanisms on the local nerve and DRG. Persistent neuropathic pain was induced by chronic constriction of the rat sciatic nerve. Local ASC treatment has demonstrated robust beneficial outcomes, including the alleviation of mechanical allodynia, improvement of gait, regeneration of muscle fibers, and electrophysiological recovery. In addition, locally transplanted ASCs facilitated axon remyelination, alleviated neuroinflammation, and reduced inflammatory cell infiltration of the injured nerve and associated dorsal root ganglion (DRG). Trafficking of the transplanted ASC preserved viability and phenotype less than 7 days but contributed to robust immunomodulatory regulation of inflammatory gene expression in both the injured nerve and DRG. Locally transplanted ASC on compressed nerve improve sensory and motor recoveries from irreversible chronic constriction injury of rat sciatic nerve via alleviation of both local and remote neuroinflammation, suggesting the promising role of adjuvant ASC therapies for clinical compressive neuropathy.

LincRNA-Cox2 Regulates Smoke-induced Inflammation in Murine Macrophages.

Cigarette smoke (CS) exposure is a risk factor for many chronic diseases, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, but the mechanism by which smoke exposure can alter homeostasis and bring about chronic inflammation is poorly understood. Here, we showcase a novel role for smoke in regulating long noncoding RNAs, showing that it activates lincRNA-Cox2, which we previously characterized as functional in inflammatory regulation. Exposing lincRNA-Cox2 murine models to smoke invivo confirmed lincRNA-Cox2 as a regulator of inflammatory gene expression in response to smoke both systemically and within the lung. We also report that lincRNA-Cox2 negatively regulates genes in smoked bone marrow-derived macrophages exposed to LPS stimulation. In addition to the effects on long noncoding RNAs, we also report dysregulated transcription and splicing of inflammatory protein-coding genes in the bone marrow niche after CS exposure invivo. Collectively, this work provides insights into how innate immune signaling from gene expression to splicing is altered after invivo exposure to CS and highlights an important new role for lincRNA-Cox2 in regulating immune genes after smoke exposure.

Abstract 1832: Regulation of inflammatory Gene expression in Senescence

Abstract 1832: Regulation of inflammatory Gene expression in Senescence

Evaluation of Anti-inflammatory Activity of Novel HDAC Inhibitors using in vitro Methods

Inflammation is a neighborhood reaction to cell injury that is set apart by fine enlargement, leukocytic invasion, redness, heat, agony, expanding and loss of function. HDAC inhibitors play crucial role in regulation of inflammatory gene expression. The point of the investigation was to assess the anti-inflammatory activity of novel HDAC inhibitors having cinnamyl moiety. In the present study, two cinnamyl sulfonamide hydroxamate (CSH) derivatives (4a and 4b) were evaluated for their anti-inflammatory activity by in vitro methods, includes COX, LOX inhibitory assay, iNOS, MPO and determination of cellular nitrite level. The present study revealed that the newly derived compound 4a have potential anti-inflammatory activity and can serves as lead molecule in drug discovery.

The Role of microRNAs in Inflammation.

Inflammation is a biological response of the immune system to various insults, such as pathogens, toxic compounds, damaged cells, and radiation. The complex network of pro- and anti-inflammatory factors and their direction towards inflammation often leads to the development and progression of various inflammation-associated diseases. The role of small non-coding RNAs (small ncRNAs) in inflammation has gained much attention in the past two decades for their regulation of inflammatory gene expression at multiple levels and their potential to serve as biomarkers and therapeutic targets in various diseases. One group of small ncRNAs, microRNAs (miRNAs), has become a key regulator in various inflammatory disease conditions. Their fine-tuning of target gene regulation often turns out to be an important factor in controlling aberrant inflammatory reactions in the system. This review summarizes the biogenesis of miRNA and the mechanisms of miRNA-mediated gene regulation. The review also briefly discusses various pro- and anti-inflammatory miRNAs, their targets and functions, and provides a detailed discussion on the role of miR-10a in inflammation.

PGC-1β maintains mitochondrial metabolism and restrains inflammatory gene expression.

Metabolic programming of the innate immune cells known as dendritic cells (DCs) changes in response to different stimuli, influencing their function. While the mechanisms behind increased glycolytic metabolism in response to inflammatory stimuli are well-studied, less is known about the programming of mitochondrial metabolism in DCs. We used lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and interferon-β (IFN-β), which differentially stimulate the use of glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), respectively, to identify factors important for mitochondrial metabolism. We found that the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator 1β (PGC-1β), a transcriptional co-activator and known regulator of mitochondrial metabolism, decreases when DCs are activated with LPS, when OXPHOS is diminished, but not with IFN-β, when OXPHOS is maintained. We examined the role of PGC-1β in bioenergetic metabolism of DCs and found that PGC-1β deficiency indeed impairs their mitochondrial respiration. PGC-1β-deficient DCs are more glycolytic compared to controls, likely to compensate for reduced OXPHOS. PGC-1β deficiency also causes decreased capacity for ATP production at steady state and in response to IFN-β treatment. Loss of PGC-1β in DCs leads to increased expression of genes in inflammatory pathways, and reduced expression of genes encoding proteins important for mitochondrial metabolism and function. Collectively, these results demonstrate that PGC-1β is a key regulator of mitochondrial metabolism and negative regulator of inflammatory gene expression in DCs.

The glucose transporter GLUT3 controls T helper 17 cell responses through glycolytic-epigenetic reprogramming

Metabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of activated Tcells. The switch from oxidative phosphorylation to aerobic glycolysis provides energy and intermediary metabolites for the biosynthesis of macromolecules to support clonal expansion and effector function. Here, we show that glycolytic reprogramming additionally controls inflammatory gene expression via epigenetic remodeling. We found that the glucose transporter GLUT3 is essential for the effector functions of Th17 cells in models of autoimmune colitis and encephalomyelitis. At the molecular level, we show that GLUT3-dependent glucose uptake controls a metabolic-transcriptional circuit that regulates the pathogenicity of Th17 cells. Metabolomic, epigenetic, and transcriptomic analyses linked GLUT3 to mitochondrial glucose oxidation and ACLY-dependent acetyl-CoA generation as a rate-limiting step in the epigenetic regulation of inflammatory gene expression. Our findings are also important from a translational perspective because inhibiting GLUT3-dependent acetyl-CoA generation is a promising metabolic checkpoint to mitigate Th17-cell-mediated inflammatory diseases.

HAT/HDAC: The epigenetic regulators of inflammatory gene expression (Review)

Inflammation is a condition through which the body responds to infection or tissue injury. It is typically characterized by the expression of a plethora of genes involved in inflammation, that are regulated by transcription factors, transcriptional co‑regulators, and chromatin remodeling events. Differential mitotically heritable patterns of gene expression without changes in the DNA sequence are essentially controlled by epigenetic regulation. Epigenetic mechanisms, such as histone modifications and DNA methylation have a profound effect on inflammatory gene transcription. Histone protein modifications, which include acetylation and the ubiquitination of lysine residues, the methylation of lysine and arginine, and the phosphorylation of serine have been found to modulate chromatin dynamics, thus altering the levels of gene expression. Histone acetyltransferases (HATs) and histone deacetylases (HDACs) regulate the addition and removal of acetyl groups from lysine residues on histones respectively. Nuclear factor <em>(NF)‑κB</em>, tumor necrosis factor <em>(TNF)‑α</em> and interleukin <em>(IL)‑6</em> are the pro‑inflammatory genes known to promote inflammatory responses in cells. By contrast, 15‑lipoxygenase‑1 <em>(15‑LOX‑1)</em> and monoamine oxidase‑A <em>(MAO‑A)</em> are the genes that can act against inflammation in certain specific conditions. 15‑LOX‑1, a lipid peroxidative enzyme, is associated with the development of inflammatory disorders, such as atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma and renal injury. MAO‑A catalyzes degradation of biogenic amines and has been reported to cause oxidative stress, atherosclerosis and neuroinflammation. 15‑LOX‑1 has been shown to be co‑expressed along with MAO‑A, in both primary human monocytes and A549 lung carcinoma cells upon treatment with Th2 cytokines, such as IL‑4 and IL‑13. The present review aimed to discuss the HAT‑ and HDAC‑mediated epigenetic machinery which governs the expression of pro‑inflammatory genes, such as <em>IL‑6</em>, <em>TNF‑α</em>, etc., as well as the expression of anti‑inflammatory genes, such as <em>15‑LOX‑1</em> and <em>MAO‑A</em>, responsible for modulating the process of inflammation. On the whole, the present review aims to provide deeper insight into the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in the epigenetic regulation of inflammation, which may have novel implications in designing small molecule inhibitors that target the epigenetic machinery for the effective treatment of a variety of inflammation‑related diseases.

Abstract 15053: Vascular Inflammation in Pulmonary Hypertension is Exacerbated by Litaf-dependent Pericyte Signaling

Introduction: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a progressive disease which leads to right heart failure and death. Inflammation plays a key role in PAH pathogenesis as evidenced by inflammatory cell infiltrates around pulmonary vascular lesions and elevated patient serum pro-inflammatory cytokine levels. Pericytes are cells that provide mural support, maintain endothelial homeostasis and have immunomodulatory properties as evidenced by their production of cytokines and regulation of endothelial response to injury. Our group has shown that pericytes contribute to vascular remodeling and vessel loss in PAH, but their contribution to perivascular inflammation is unknown. Hypothesis: Lipopolysaccharide induced tumor necrosis factor activating factor (LITAF) positively regulates pericyte production of proinflammatory cytokines in PAH which influence activation of endothelial cells to engage in leukocyte recruitment. Methods: Healthy donor (HD) and PAH lung pericyte RNA-seq and microarray datasets were analyzed to identify candidate inflammatory pathways. Proteomic analysis was performed using Luminex assay followed by supervised machine learning. Quantitative PCR (qPCR) and western blot (WB) studies were conducted on HD and PAH pericytes exposed to serum starvation, hypoxia, LPS, and CoCl 2 (a HIF activator). Results: Network analysis based on RNA-seq, microarray, and Luminex assay data identified LITAF as a potential regulator of inflammatory gene expression. Compared to HD, abundant LITAF expression was visualized in human PAH perivascular lesions. WB of PAH pericytes showed a significant increase in nuclear LITAF compared to HD across all conditions. Pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (PMVECs) incubated with media from PAH pericytes showed reduced cell-cell junctions and upregulated ICAM and VCAM compared to HD. Incubation of healthy PMVECs with supernatant from LITAF siRNA transfected HD and PAH pericytes showed a decrease in PMVEC proinflammatory cell markers. Conclusions: Our data suggest that LITAF-driven pericyte signaling could play a role in promoting vascular inflammation in PAH. We believe LITAF could serve as a potential new therapeutic target in PAH.

LPS-Inducible lncRNA TMC3-AS1 Negatively Regulates the Expression of IL-10.

Long non-coding RNAs are essential regulators of the inflammatory response, especially for transcriptional regulation of inflammatory genes. It has been reported that the expression of transmembrane channel-like 3 (TMC3)–AS1 is increased following lipopolysaccharide stimulation. However, the potential function of TMC3-AS1 in immunity is largely unknown. Herein, we report a specific role for TMC3-AS1 in the regulation of inflammatory gene expression. TMC3-AS1 negatively regulates the expression of interleukin 10 (IL-10) in macrophage and intestinal epithelial cell lines. Mechanistically, TMC3-AS1 may interact with p65 in the nucleus, preventing p65 from binding to the κB consensus site within IL-10 promoter. These findings suggest that TMC3-AS1 may function as an important regulator in the innate immune response.

Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 2 (LPCAT2) co-localises with TLR4 and regulates macrophage inflammatory gene expression in response to LPS

Despite extensive investigations, an effective treatment for sepsis remains elusive and a better understanding of the inflammatory response to infection is required to identify potential new targets for therapy. In this study we have used RNAi technology to show, for the first time, that the inducible lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase 2 (LPCAT2) plays a key role in macrophage inflammatory gene expression in response to stimulation with bacterial ligands. Using siRNA- or shRNA-mediated knockdown, we demonstrate that, in contrast to the constitutive LPCAT1, LPCAT2 is required for macrophage cytokine gene expression and release in response to TLR4 and TLR2 ligand stimulation but not for TLR-independent stimuli. In addition, cells transfected to overexpress LPCAT2 exhibited increased expression of inflammatory genes in response to LPS and other bacterial ligands. Furthermore, we have used immunoprecipitation and Western blotting to show that in response to LPS, LPCAT2, but not LPCAT1, rapidly associates with TLR4 and translocates to membrane lipid raft domains. Our data thus suggest a novel mechanism for the regulation of inflammatory gene expression in response to bacterial stimuli and highlight LPCAT2 as a potential therapeutic target for development of anti-inflammatory and anti-sepsis therapies.

HDAC3 Regulates Gingival Fibroblast Inflammatory Responses in Periodontitis

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) are important regulators of gene expression that are aberrantly regulated in several inflammatory and infectious diseases. HDAC inhibitors (HDACi) suppress inflammatory activation of various cell types through epigenetic and non-epigenetic mechanisms, and ameliorate pathology in a mouse model of periodontitis. Activation of gingival fibroblasts (GFs) significantly contributes to the development of periodontitis and the anaerobic bacterium Porphyromonas gingivalis plays a key role in driving chronic inflammation. Here, we analyzed the role of HDACs in inflammatory responses of GFs. Pan-HDACi suberoylanilide hydroxamic acid (SAHA) and/or ITF2357 (givinostat) significantly reduced TNFα- and P. gingivalis–inducible expression and/or production of a cluster of inflammatory mediators in healthy donor GFs (IL1B, CCL2, CCL5, CXCL10, COX2, and MMP3) without affecting cell viability. Selective inhibition of HDAC3/6, but not specific HDAC1, HDAC6, or HDAC8 inhibition, reproduced the suppressive effects of pan-HDACi on the inflammatory gene expression profile induced by TNFα and P. gingivalis, suggesting a critical role for HDAC3 in GF inflammatory activation. Consistently, silencing of HDAC3 expression with siRNA largely recapitulated the effects of HDAC3/6i on mRNA levels of inflammatory mediators in P. gingivalis–infected GFs. In contrast, P. gingivalis internalization and intracellular survival in GFs remained unaffected by HDACi. Activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases and NFκB signaling was unaffected by global or HDAC3/6-selective HDACi, and new protein synthesis was not required for gene suppression by HDACi. Finally, pan-HDACi and HDAC3/6i suppressed P. gingivalis–induced expression of IL1B, CCL2, CCL5, CXCL10, MMP1, and MMP3 in GFs from patients with periodontitis. Our results identify HDAC3 as an important regulator of inflammatory gene expression in GFs and suggest that therapeutic targeting of HDAC activity, in particular HDAC3, may be clinically beneficial in suppressing inflammation in periodontal disease.

SETD7 mediates spinal microgliosis and neuropathic pain in a rat model of peripheral nerve injury

Gene transcription regulation is critical for the development of spinal microgliosis and neuropathic pain after peripheral nerve injury. Using a model of chronic constriction injury (CCI) of the sciatic nerve, this study characterized the role of SET domain containing lysine methyltransferase 7 (SETD7) which monomethylates histone H3 lysine 4 (H3K4me1), a marker for active gene transcription. SETD7 protein expression in the spinal dorsal horn ipsilateral to nerve lesion was increased from one day to 14 days after CCI, concomitantly with the expression of inflammatory genes, Ccl2, Il-6 and Il-1β. The CCI-induced SETD7 expression was predominantly localized to microglia, as demonstrated by immunohistochemistry and western blot from magnetic activated cell sorted spinal microglia. SETD7 knockdown by intrathecal lentivirus shRNA delivery prior to CCI prevented spinal microgliosis and neuropathic pain, whereas lentiviral SETD7 transduction exacerbated these symptoms. In addition, SETD7 regulated H3K4me1 level and expression of inflammatory mediators both in CCI rats and in the HAPI rat microglia cell line. Accordingly, PFI-2, a specific inhibitor of SETD7 monomethylation activity, suppressed the lipopolysaccharides-induced amoeboid morphology of primary microglia and the expression of inflammatory genes, Ccl2, Il-6 and Il-1β. Moreover, intrathecal administration of PFI-2 alleviated CCI-induced neuropathic pain. However, this effect was observed in male but not in female rats. These results demonstrate a critical role of SETD7 in the development of spinal microgliosis and neuropathic pain subsequently to peripheral nerve injury. The pharmacological approach further suggests that SETD7 is a new target for the treatment of neuropathic pain. The underlying mechanisms may involve H3K4me1-dependent regulation of inflammatory gene expression in microglia.

Association between histopathological changes and expression of selected microRNAs in skin of adult patients with IgA vasculitis.

IgA vasculitis (IgAV) is a common small-vessel systemic vasculitisthat is histologically characterised by granulocyte infiltration and IgA deposition in vessel walls. Information on microRNA (miRNA) involvement inIgAVis limited. The aim of this study was toanalyse the association between histopathological changes and expression profiles of 14 miRNAs in the affected skin of 70 adult patients with IgAV. miRNA expression analysis was performed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction and evaluation of histopathological changes by light and immunofluorescence microscopy on formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded skin excision samples. In IgAV-affected skin, granulocyte infiltration was significantly associated with vessel fibrinoid necrosis. Of the analysed miRNAs, four showed two-fold increased expression (let-7d, let-7f, miR-21-5p, and miR-203-3p), five showed five-fold increased expression (let-7b, miR-17-5p, miR-155-5p, miR-423-5p, and miR-451a), and threeshowed 15-fold increased expression (let-7a, miR-21-3p, miR-223-3p), as compared with controls (all P<0.001). miR-146a-5p and miR-148b-3p showed three-fold decreased expression (P=0.981 and P<0.001). The expression of miR-223-3p also showed a significant positive association with granulocyte infiltration and fibrinoid necrosis. Altered miRNA expression, especially of miRNA-223-3p, may be associated with the skin inflammatory state in IgAV. The majority of aberrantly expressed miRNAs in IgAV-affected skin are known to influence the nuclear factor-κBsignalling pathway, which is crucial for activation of key proinflammatory genes, including those encoding tumour necrosis factor-α, interleukin (IL)-6, and IL-8. Furthermore, miR-146a-5p and miR-148b-3p, which are negative regulators of inflammatory gene expression, showed decreased expression and could contribute to the exaggerated inflammation. Further investigation of miRNA expression in the affected tissues could improve our knowledge of IgAV pathogenesis, and possibly help to identify novel biomarkers in body fluids.

Butyrate mediated regulation of RNA binding proteins in the post-transcriptional regulation of inflammatory gene expression

Short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are produced by commensal bacteria in the gut and are known to reduce inflammation through transcriptional inhibition of cytokines and inflammatory proteins such as cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). Butyrate is a SCFA that was reported to alter the mRNA stability of inflammatory genes by increasiing the expression of the RNA binding protein (RBP) Tristetraprolin (TTP). We have hypothesized that butyrate may regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally through global effects on the expression or cytoplasmic translocation of RBPs. Using bioinformatics analyses of publicly available microarray data as well as colon cancer cell lines treated with sodium butyrate, we have observed that butyrate treatment led to a general reduction in expression of several (but not all) RBPs and inhibition in the cytosolic translocation of HuR, a well-known stabilizing RBP. This was reflected in reduced NanoLuc reporter activity of several different AU-rich element (ARE) sequences in the presence of butyrate; this suppression was retained even when HuR was overexpressed. Mechanistically, we have shown that reduced activity of HuR was related to decreased phosphorylation of p38 and MK2 and enhanced phosphorylation of Chk2. As a proof of concept, we show butyrate-mediated inhibition in binding of HuR to the 3’UTR of COX-2 mRNA resulting in reduced mRNA and protein levels of the inflammatory gene. Overall, our data suggest that butyrate can reduce the expression of inflammatory genes not only by transcriptional regulation, but also by post-transcriptional regulation via inhibition of mRNA stabilizing proteins.

Signaling Crosstalk Mechanisms That May Fine-Tune Pathogen-Responsive NFκB.

Precise control of inflammatory gene expression is critical for effective host defense without excessive tissue damage. The principal regulator of inflammatory gene expression is nuclear factor kappa B (NFκB), a transcription factor. Nuclear NFκB activity is controlled by IκB proteins, whose stimulus-responsive degradation and re-synthesis provide for transient or dynamic regulation. The IκB-NFκB signaling module receives input signals from a variety of pathogen sensors, such as toll-like receptors (TLRs). The molecular components and mechanisms of NFκB signaling are well-understood and have been reviewed elsewhere in detail. Here we review the molecular mechanisms that mediate cross-regulation of TLR-IκB-NFκB signal transduction by signaling pathways that do not activate NFκB themselves, such as interferon signaling pathways. We distinguish between potential regulatory crosstalk mechanisms that (i) occur proximal to TLRs and thus may have stimulus-specific effects, (ii) affect the core IκB-NFκB signaling module to modulate NFκB activation in response to several stimuli. We review some well-documented examples of molecular crosstalk mechanisms and indicate other potential mechanisms whose physiological roles require further study.

PTX3 Regulates miR-21 Expression and Secretion in Brown Adipocytes During Lipopolysaccharide-induced Inflammation (P21-072-19)

Abstract Objectives Metabolic endotoxemia is known to induce systemic inflammation and adipose tissue dysfunction during obesity. Pentraxin 3 (PTX3), a member of the pentraxin family can be induced by inflammatory stimuli in adipocytes. However, how PTX3 regulates inflammation in adipocytes is not fully understood. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are key regulators of inflammatory gene expression. Specifically, miR-21 plays a role in the resolution of inflammation through inhibiting Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling pathway. This study aimed to investigate how PTX3 regulates inflammatory homeostasis involving miR-21 during lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation in brown adipocytes. Methods Using PTX3 knockout (KO) mouse and primary stromal-vascular (SV) cell culture models, we determined the effect of PTX3 deficiency on miR-21 expression, secretion, and inflammatory response in brown adipocytes, as well as the rescue effect of recombinant PTX3 on LPS-induced inflammation. Results Brown adipose tissue (BAT) had significantly higher levels of Dicer protein expression than inguinal and epididymal adipose depots; fully differentiated brown adipocytes expressed higher levels of Dicer than SV cells. These results suggest that BAT is the major site of miRNA production, and brown adipocyte is the main cell type that produces miRNAs. Moreover, we found brown adipocytes but not SV cells are the LPS responsive cells in miR-21 expression and secretion. In WT brown adipocytes, LPS stimulation significantly up-regulated cellular levels of miR-21. Interestingly, PTX3 deficiency led to a significant increase in the basal levels of both cellular and secreted miR21 compared to WT cells. Unlike in WT cells, LPS treatment suppressed cellular expression as well as secretion of miR-21 in PTX3 KO brown adipocytes. Treatment of recombinant PTX3 slightly up-regulated cellular expression of miR-21, but significantly increased the secretion of miR-21 in PTX3 KO brown adipocytes. Moreover, Treatment of recombinant PTX3 significantly attenuated LPS-stimulated increase in the expression of TNFα and MCP1 genes in PTX3 KO adipocytes. Conclusions We conclude that PTX3 plays an anti-inflammatory role in part via regulating the expression and secretion of miR-21. Funding Sources American Diabetes Association.