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Blinova VG, Zhdanov DD. Many Faces of Regulatory T Cells: Heterogeneity or Plasticity? Cells 2024; 13:959. [PMID: 38891091 PMCID: PMC11171907 DOI: 10.3390/cells13110959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2024] [Revised: 05/21/2024] [Accepted: 05/22/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are essential for maintaining the immune balance in normal and pathological conditions. In autoimmune diseases and transplantation, they restrain the loss of self-tolerance and promote engraftment, whereas in cancer, an increase in Treg numbers is mostly associated with tumor growth and poor prognosis. Numerous markers and their combinations have been used to identify Treg subsets, demonstrating the phenotypic diversity of Tregs. The complexity of Treg identification can be hampered by the unstable expression of some markers, the decrease in the expression of a specific marker over time or the emergence of a new marker. It remains unclear whether such phenotypic shifts are due to new conditions or whether the observed changes are due to initially different populations. In the first case, cellular plasticity is observed, whereas in the second, cellular heterogeneity is observed. The difference between these terms in relation to Tregs is rather blurred. Considering the promising perspectives of Tregs in regenerative cell-based therapy, the existing confusing data on Treg phenotypes require further investigation and analysis. In our review, we introduce criteria that allow us to distinguish between the heterogeneity and plasticity of Tregs normally and pathologically, taking a closer look at their diversity and drawing the line between two terms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Varvara G. Blinova
- Laboratory of Medical Biotechnology, Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya st. 10/8, 119121 Moscow, Russia;
| | - Dmitry D. Zhdanov
- Laboratory of Medical Biotechnology, Institute of Biomedical Chemistry, Pogodinskaya st. 10/8, 119121 Moscow, Russia;
- Department of Biochemistry, People’s Friendship University of Russia Named after Patrice Lumumba (RUDN University), Miklukho-Maklaya st. 6, 117198 Moscow, Russia
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Alvarez F, Liu Z, Bay A, Piccirillo CA. Deciphering the developmental trajectory of tissue-resident Foxp3 + regulatory T cells. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1331846. [PMID: 38605970 PMCID: PMC11007185 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1331846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2024] [Indexed: 04/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Foxp3+ TREG cells have been at the focus of intense investigation for their recognized roles in preventing autoimmunity, facilitating tissue recuperation following injury, and orchestrating a tolerance to innocuous non-self-antigens. To perform these critical tasks, TREG cells undergo deep epigenetic, transcriptional, and post-transcriptional changes that allow them to adapt to conditions found in tissues both at steady-state and during inflammation. The path leading TREG cells to express these tissue-specialized phenotypes begins during thymic development, and is further driven by epigenetic and transcriptional modifications following TCR engagement and polarizing signals in the periphery. However, this process is highly regulated and requires TREG cells to adopt strategies to avoid losing their regulatory program altogether. Here, we review the origins of tissue-resident TREG cells, from their thymic and peripheral development to the transcriptional regulators involved in their tissue residency program. In addition, we discuss the distinct signalling pathways that engage the inflammatory adaptation of tissue-resident TREG cells, and how they relate to their ability to recognize tissue and pathogen-derived danger signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fernando Alvarez
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Infectious Diseases and Immunology in Global Health Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), Montréal, QC, Canada
- Centre of Excellence in Translational Immunology (CETI), Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Zhiyang Liu
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Infectious Diseases and Immunology in Global Health Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), Montréal, QC, Canada
- Centre of Excellence in Translational Immunology (CETI), Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Alexandre Bay
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Infectious Diseases and Immunology in Global Health Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), Montréal, QC, Canada
- Centre of Excellence in Translational Immunology (CETI), Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Ciriaco A. Piccirillo
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada
- Infectious Diseases and Immunology in Global Health Program, The Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC), Montréal, QC, Canada
- Centre of Excellence in Translational Immunology (CETI), Montréal, QC, Canada
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Lupsa N, Érsek B, Böröczky C, Kis D, Szarka E, Lumniczky K, Sáfrány G, Zádori ZS, Szöőr Á, Buzás EI, Pós Z. High sensitivity of host Helios +/Neuropilin-1 + Treg to pretransplant conditioning hampers development of OX40 bright/integrin-β7 + regulatory cells in acute gastrointestinal GvHD. Eur J Immunol 2024:e2350619. [PMID: 38532599 DOI: 10.1002/eji.202350619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
This study sought to compare the behavior of Treg subsets displaying different coexpression patterns of Neuropilin-1 (Nrp1) and Helios, under the influence of gut stress unrelated to hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, pretransplantation conditioning, and posttransplant gastrointestinal acute graft versus host disease (GI-aGvHD). Host CD4+/CD25hi/Foxp3+ Treg cells, identified by flow cytometry, were isolated from various tissues of mice affected by these stressors. Expression of CD25, CTLA-4, CD39, OX40, integrin-β7, LAG3, TGFβ/LAP, granzyme-A, -B, and interleukin-10 was compared in four Treg subsets displaying Helios or Nrp1 only, both or none. Fluorescence-activated cell sorter-sorted Treg subsets, displaying markers affected in a conditioning- and GI-aGVHD-restricted manner, were further investigated by transcriptome profiling and T-cell suppression assays. We found that conditioning by irradiation greatly diminished the relative frequency of Helios+/Nrp1+ Treg, shifting the balance toward Helios-/Nrp1- Treg in the host. Upregulation of integrin-β7 and OX40 occurred in GI-aGvHD-dependent manner in Helios+/Nrp1+ cells but not in Helios-/Nrp1- Treg. Sorted Treg subsets, confirmed to overexpress Nrp1, Helios, OX40, or integrin-β7, displayed superior immunosuppressive activity and enrichment in activation-related messenger RNA transcripts. Our data suggest that conditioning-induced shrinkage of the Nrp1+/Helios+ Treg subset may contribute to the development of GI-GvHD by impairing gut homing and decreasing the efficiency of Treg-mediated immunosuppression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolett Lupsa
- Department of Genetics, Cell and Immunobiology, Faculty of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Barbara Érsek
- Department of Genetics, Cell and Immunobiology, Faculty of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Csenge Böröczky
- Department of Genetics, Cell and Immunobiology, Faculty of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Dávid Kis
- Unit of Radiation Medicine, Department of Radiobiology and Radiohygiene, National Public Health Center, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Eszter Szarka
- Unit of Radiation Medicine, Department of Radiobiology and Radiohygiene, National Public Health Center, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Katalin Lumniczky
- Unit of Radiation Medicine, Department of Radiobiology and Radiohygiene, National Public Health Center, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Géza Sáfrány
- Unit of Radiation Medicine, Department of Radiobiology and Radiohygiene, National Public Health Center, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Zoltán S Zádori
- Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapy, Faculty of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Árpád Szöőr
- Department of Biophysics and Cell Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Debrecen, Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Edit I Buzás
- Department of Genetics, Cell and Immunobiology, Faculty of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
- Immunproteogenomics Extracellular Vesicle Research Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences-Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
- Extracellular Vesicle Research Group, Hungarian Center of Excellence Molecular Medicine, Budapest, Hungary
| | - Zoltán Pós
- Department of Genetics, Cell and Immunobiology, Faculty of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary
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Martens PJ, Ellis D, Bruggeman Y, Viaene M, Laureys J, Teyton L, Mathieu C, Gysemans C. Preventing type 1 diabetes in late-stage pre-diabetic NOD mice with insulin: A central role for alum as adjuvant. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2022; 13:1023264. [PMID: 36339431 PMCID: PMC9630573 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2022.1023264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Restoration of immune tolerance to disease-relevant antigens is an appealing approach to prevent or arrest an organ-specific autoimmune disease like type 1 diabetes (T1D). Numerous studies have identified insulin as a key antigen of interest to use in such strategies, but to date, the success of these interventions in humans has been inconsistent. The efficacy of antigen-specific immunotherapy may be enhanced by optimising the dose, timing, and route of administration, and perhaps by the inclusion of adjuvants like alum. The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of an insulin peptide vaccine formulated with alum to prevent T1D development in female non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice when administered during late-stage pre-diabetes. METHODS Starting at 10 weeks of age, female NOD mice received four weekly subcutaneous injections of an insulin B:8-24 (InsB:8-24) peptide with (Ins+alum) or without Imject® alum (Ins) as adjuvant. Diabetes incidence was assessed for up to 30 weeks of age. Insulin autoantibodies and C-peptide concentrations were measured in plasma and flow cytometric analysis was performed on pancreatic-draining lymph nodes (PLN) and pancreas using an InsB:12-20-reactive tetramer. RESULTS InsB:8-24 peptide formulated in alum reduced diabetes incidence (39%), compared to mice receiving the InsB:8-24 peptide without alum (71%, P < 0.05), mice receiving alum alone (76%, P < 0.01), or mice left untreated (70%, P < 0.01). This was accompanied by reduced insulitis severity, and preservation of C-peptide. Ins+alum was associated with reduced frequencies of pathogenic effector memory CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in the pancreas and increased frequencies of insulin-reactive FoxP3+ Tregs in the PLN. Of interest, insulin-reactive Tregs were enriched amongst populations of Tregs expressing markers indicative of stable FoxP3 expression and enhanced suppressive function. CONCLUSION An InsB:8-24 peptide vaccine prevented the onset of T1D in late-stage pre-diabetic NOD mice, but only when formulated in alum. These findings support the use of alum as adjuvant to optimise the efficacy of antigen-specific immunotherapy in future trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pieter-Jan Martens
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology (CEE), Campus Gasthuisberg O&N1, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Darcy Ellis
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology (CEE), Campus Gasthuisberg O&N1, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Ylke Bruggeman
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology (CEE), Campus Gasthuisberg O&N1, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Marijke Viaene
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology (CEE), Campus Gasthuisberg O&N1, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jos Laureys
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology (CEE), Campus Gasthuisberg O&N1, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Luc Teyton
- Scripps Research Institute, Department of Immunology and Microbiology, La Jolla, CA, United States
| | - Chantal Mathieu
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology (CEE), Campus Gasthuisberg O&N1, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Conny Gysemans
- Clinical and Experimental Endocrinology (CEE), Campus Gasthuisberg O&N1, Leuven, Belgium
- *Correspondence: Conny Gysemans,
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