WSX-1 signalling inhibits CD4⁺ T cell migration to the liver during malaria infection by repressing chemokine-independent pathways

PLoS One. 2013 Nov 7;8(11):e78486. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0078486. eCollection 2013.

Abstract

IL-27 is an important and non-redundant regulator of effector T cell accumulation in non-lymphoid tissues during infection. Using malaria as a model systemic pro-inflammatory infection, we demonstrate that the aberrant accumulation of CD4⁺ T cells in the liver of infected IL27R(-/-) (WSX-1(-/-)) mice is a result of differences in cellular recruitment, rather than changes in T cell proliferation or cell death. We show that IL-27 both inhibits the migratory capacity of infection-derived CD4⁺ T cells towards infection-derived liver cells, but also suppresses the production of soluble liver-derived mediator(s) that direct CD4⁺ T cell movement towards the inflamed tissue. Although CCL4 and CCL5 expression was higher in livers of infected WSX-1(-/-) mice than infected WT mice, and hepatic CD4⁺ T cells from WSX-1(-/-) mice expressed higher levels of CCR5 than cells from WT mice, migration of CD4⁺ T cells to the liver of WSX-1(-/-) mice during infection was not controlled by chemokine (R) signalling. However, anti-IL-12p40 treatment reduced migration of CD4⁺ T cells towards infection-derived liver cells, primarily by abrogating the hepatotropic migratory capacity of T cells, rather than diminishing soluble tissue-derived migratory signals. These results indicate that IL-27R signalling restricts CD4⁺ T cell accumulation within the liver during infection primarily by suppressing T cell chemotaxis, which may be linked to its capacity to repress Th1 differentiation, as well as by inhibiting the production of soluble, tissue-derived chemotaxins.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / metabolism*
  • CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / pathology
  • Chemokine CCL4 / genetics
  • Chemokine CCL4 / metabolism*
  • Chemokine CCL5 / genetics
  • Chemokine CCL5 / metabolism*
  • Liver / metabolism*
  • Liver / pathology
  • Malaria / genetics
  • Malaria / metabolism*
  • Malaria / pathology
  • Mice
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Plasmodium berghei / genetics
  • Plasmodium berghei / metabolism
  • Receptors, Cytokine / genetics
  • Receptors, Cytokine / metabolism*
  • Receptors, Interleukin
  • Signal Transduction*

Substances

  • Ccl5 protein, mouse
  • Chemokine CCL4
  • Chemokine CCL5
  • Il27ra protein, mouse
  • Receptors, Cytokine
  • Receptors, Interleukin