Voisin T, Perner C, Messou MA, Shiers S, Ualiyeva S, Kanaoka Y, Price TJ, Sokol CL, Bankova LG, Austen KF, Chiu IM. The CysLT
2R receptor mediates leukotriene C
4-driven acute and chronic itch.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021;
118:e2022087118. [PMID:
33753496 DOI:
10.1073/pnas.2022087118]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Interactions between the nervous system and immune system are central regulators of chronic itch, a key feature of pathologies like atopic dermatitis and allergic contact dermatitis. Cysteinyl leukotrienes (LTC4, LTD4, and LTE4) are eicosanoid lipids known for mediating inflammation, bronchoconstriction, and vascular leakage. We demonstrate here that CysLTs are potent itch inducers and that this effect depends on the specific coupling of LTC4 with its receptor CysLT2R, which is expressed in a population of peripheral sensory neurons in the mouse and in human. We show that the LTC4/CysLT2R pathway contributes to a model of chronic itch, suggesting that CysLT2R could be a new therapeutic target for intractable chronic itch.
Acute and chronic itch are burdensome manifestations of skin pathologies including allergic skin diseases and atopic dermatitis, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are not well understood. Cysteinyl leukotrienes (CysLTs), comprising LTC4, LTD4, and LTE4, are produced by immune cells during type 2 inflammation. Here, we uncover a role for LTC4 and its signaling through the CysLT receptor 2 (CysLT2R) in itch. Cysltr2 transcript is highly expressed in dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons linked to itch in mice. We also detected CYSLTR2 in a broad population of human DRG neurons. Injection of leukotriene C4 (LTC4) or its nonhydrolyzable form NMLTC4, but neither LTD4 nor LTE4, induced dose-dependent itch but not pain behaviors in mice. LTC4-mediated itch differed in bout duration and kinetics from pruritogens histamine, compound 48/80, and chloroquine. NMLTC4-induced itch was abrogated in mice deficient for Cysltr2 or when deficiency was restricted to radioresistant cells. Itch was unaffected in mice deficient for Cysltr1, Trpv1, or mast cells (WSh mice). CysLT2R played a role in itch in the MC903 mouse model of chronic itch and dermatitis, but not in models of dry skin or compound 48/80- or Alternaria-induced itch. In MC903-treated mice, CysLT levels increased in skin over time, and Cysltr2−/− mice showed decreased itch in the chronic phase of inflammation. Collectively, our study reveals that LTC4 acts through CysLT2R as its physiological receptor to induce itch, and CysLT2R contributes to itch in a model of dermatitis. Therefore, targeting CysLT signaling may be a promising approach to treat inflammatory itch.
Collapse