SFB 1054 Seminar - Friederike Berberich-Siebelt
Institute of Pathology, Julius-Maximilians-Universität, Würzburg, Germany
06.12.2018 at 12:15
Title: Lack of NFATc1 SUMOylation prevents autoimmunity and alloreactivity
Post-translational modification with SUMO is known to regulate the activity of transcription factors, but how SUMOylation of individual proteins might influence immunity is mostly unexplored. The NFAT transcription factors play an essential role in antigen receptor-mediated gene regulation. SUMOylation of NFATc1 represses IL-2 in vitro, but its role in T cell-mediated immune responses in vivo is not clear. To this end, we generated a novel Nfatc1 transgenic mouse, which prevents SUMO modification of NFATc1. Avoidance of NFATc1 SUMOylation ameliorated experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis as well as graft-versus-host disease. An elevated IL-2 production promoted Treg expansion and suppressed autoreactive or alloreactive T cells. Mechanistically, increased IL-2 secretion counteracted IL-17 and IFN-γ expression through STAT5 and Blimp-1 induction. Then, Blimp-1 repressed IL-2 itself and the as well induced, proliferation-associated survival factor Bcl2A1. Collectively, we demonstrate that prevention of NFATc1 SUMOylation fine-tunes T-cell responses towards lasting tolerance. Thus, targeting NFATc1 SUMOylation presents a novel and promising strategy to treat T cell-mediated inflammatory diseases.
Friederike Berberich-Siebelt - Website
Venue:
BioMedical Center (BMC), Room N 01.017,
Großhaderner Str. 9, Planegg-Martinsried
Host: Dirk Baumjohann (B12)
