6533b824fe1ef96bd1280a03

RESEARCH PRODUCT

The transcription factor IFN regulatory factor–4 controls experimental colitis in mice via T cell–derived IL-6

Stefan Rose JohnMirjam SchenkBenno WeigmannStefan BiesterfeldMichael LohoffAnne BrüstleChristoph MuellerImke AtreyaChristoph BeckerJonas MudterPeter R. GalleHans A. LehrRaja AtreyaStefan WirtzArthur HoffmanMarkus F. NeurathJingling YuLioubov Amoussina

subject

AdultCD4-Positive T-LymphocytesMaleAdoptive cell transferRecombinant Fusion ProteinsT-LymphocytesCD3T cellAdoptive Transfer; Adult; Animals; Apoptosis; CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes; Colitis; Cytokines; DNA-Binding Proteins; Female; Gene Expression Regulation; Humans; Inflammatory Bowel Diseases; Interferon Regulatory Factors; Interleukin-6; Intestinal Mucosa; Male; Mice; Mice Inbred C57BL; Mice Knockout; Middle Aged; Oxazolone; Receptors Interleukin-6; Recombinant Fusion Proteins; T-Lymphocytes; Trinitrobenzenesulfonic AcidApoptosisProinflammatory cytokineMiceIntestinal mucosamedicineAnimalsHumansIntestinal MucosaColitisInterleukin 6Mice KnockoutbiologyInterleukin-6OxazoloneGeneral MedicineMiddle AgedColitisInflammatory Bowel Diseasesmedicine.diseaseAdoptive TransferReceptors Interleukin-6Ulcerative colitisDNA-Binding ProteinsMice Inbred C57BLmedicine.anatomical_structureGene Expression RegulationTrinitrobenzenesulfonic AcidInterferon Regulatory FactorsImmunologybiology.proteinCytokinesFemaleResearch Article

description

The proinflammatory cytokine IL-6 seems to have an important role in the intestinal inflammation that characterizes inflammatory bowel diseases (IBDs) such as Crohn disease and ulcerative colitis. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms regulating IL-6 production in IBD. Here, we assessed the role of the transcriptional regulator IFN regulatory factor-4 (IRF4) in this process. Patients with either Crohn disease or ulcerative colitis exhibited increased IRF4 expression in lamina propria CD3+ T cells as compared with control patients. Consistent with IRF4 having a regulatory function in T cells, in a mouse model of IBD whereby colitis is induced in RAG-deficient mice by transplantation with CD4+CD45RB(hi) T cells, adoptive transfer of wild-type but not IRF4-deficient T cells resulted in severe colitis. Furthermore, IRF4-deficient mice were protected from T cell-dependent chronic intestinal inflammation in trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid- and oxazolone-induced colitis. In addition, IRF4-deficient mice with induced colitis had reduced mucosal IL-6 production, and IRF4 was required for IL-6 production by mucosal CD90+ T cells, which it protected from apoptosis. Finally, the protective effect of IRF4 deficiency could be abrogated by systemic administration of either recombinant IL-6 or a combination of soluble IL-6 receptor (sIL-6R) plus IL-6 (hyper-IL-6). Taken together, our data identify IRF4 as a key regulator of mucosal IL-6 production in T cell-dependent experimental colitis and suggest that IRF4 might provide a therapeutic target for IBDs.

yearjournalcountryeditionlanguage
2008-01-01Journal of Clinical Investigation
https://doi.org/10.1172/jci33227