Silvia Stockinger

IFN-λ determines the intestinal epithelial antiviral host defense

Type I and type III IFNs bind to different cell-surface receptors but induce identical signal transduction pathways, leading to the expression of antiviral host effector molecules. Despite the fact that type III IFN (IFN-λ) has been shown to predominantly act on mucosal organs, in vivo infection studies have failed to attribute a specific, nonredundant function. Instead, a predominant role of type I IFN was observed, which was explained by the ubiquitous expression of the type I IFN receptor. Here we comparatively analyzed the role of functional IFN-λ and type I IFN receptor signaling in the innate immune response to intestinal rotavirus infection in vivo, and determined viral replication and antiviral gene expression on the cellular level. We observed that both suckling and adult mice lacking functional receptors for IFN-λ were impaired in the control of oral rotavirus infection, whereas animals lacking functional receptors for type I IFN were similar to wild-type mice. Using Mx1 protein accumulation as marker for IFN responsiveness of individual cells, we demonstrate that intestinal epithelial cells, which are the prime target cells of rotavirus, strongly responded to IFN-λ but only marginally to type I IFN in vivo. Systemic treatment of suckling mice with IFN-λ repressed rotavirus replication in the gut, whereas treatment with type I IFN was not effective. These results are unique in identifying a critical role of IFN-λ in the epithelial antiviral host defense.

Cesarean Delivery Is Associated With Celiac Disease but Not Inflammatory Bowel Disease in Children

The postnatal period represents a particularly dynamic phase in the establishment of the host-microbial homeostasis. The sterile protected intestinal mucosa of the fetus becomes exposed to and subsequently colonized by a complex and diverse bacterial community. Both, the exposure to microbial ligands and the bacterial colonization have been described to differ between neonates born vaginally or by cesarean delivery. These differences might influence the development of the mucosal immune system, the establishment of a stable intestinal host-microbial homeostasis, and ultimately contribute to the risk to acquire immune mediated diseases later in life. Indeed, an increased risk for atopic diseases such as allergic rhinitis and asthma was reported in children born by cesarean delivery. Our recent study described an association between cesarean delivery and celiac disease. Here we summarize the available information on postnatal microbial colonization and the influence of the mode of delivery on flora composition and host microbial homeostasis. We discuss possible consequences of the mode of delivery on epithelial barrier function and the establishment of the mucosal immune system and speculate on functional links between flora alterations and the development of inappropriate host immune responses that may contribute to enteric inflammatory diseases.

Production of Type I IFN Sensitizes Macrophages to Cell Death Induced by Listeria monocytogenes

Type I IFNs (IFN-α/β) modulate innate immune responses. Here we show activation of transcription factor IFN regulatory factor 3, the synthesis of large amounts of IFN-β mRNA, and type I IFN signal transduction in macrophages infected with Listeria monocytogenes. Expression of the bacterial virulence protein listeriolysin O was necessary, but not sufficient, for efficient IFN-β production. Signaling through a pathway involving the type I IFN receptor and Stat1 sensitized macrophages to L. monocytogenes-induced cell death in a manner not requiring inducible NO synthase (nitric oxide synthase 2) or protein kinase R, potential effectors of type I IFN action during microbial infections. The data stress the importance of type I IFN for the course of infections with intracellular bacteria and suggest that factors other than listeriolysin O contribute to macrophage death during Listeria infection.

Age-dependent TLR3 expression of the intestinal epithelium contributes to rotavirus susceptibility.

Rotavirus is a major cause of diarrhea worldwide and exhibits a pronounced small intestinal epithelial cell (IEC) tropism. Both human infants and neonatal mice are highly susceptible, whereas adult individuals remain asymptomatic and shed only low numbers of viral particles. Here we investigated age-dependent mechanisms of the intestinal epithelial innate immune response to rotavirus infection in an oral mouse infection model. Expression of the innate immune receptor for viral dsRNA, Toll-like receptor (Tlr) 3 was low in the epithelium of suckling mice but strongly increased during the postnatal period inversely correlating with rotavirus susceptibility, viral shedding and histological damage. Adult mice deficient in Tlr3 (Tlr3−/−) or the adaptor molecule Trif (TrifLps2/Lps2) exerted significantly higher viral shedding and decreased epithelial expression of proinflammatory and antiviral genes as compared to wild-type animals. In contrast, neonatal mice deficient in Tlr3 or Trif did not display impaired cell stimulation or enhanced rotavirus susceptibility. Using chimeric mice, a major contribution of the non-hematopoietic cell compartment in the Trif-mediated antiviral host response was detected in adult animals. Finally, a significant age-dependent increase of TLR3 expression was also detected in human small intestinal biopsies. Thus, upregulation of epithelial TLR3 expression during infancy might contribute to the age-dependent susceptibility to rotavirus infection.

MicroRNA-146a-mediated downregulation of IRAK1 protects mouse and human small intestine against ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Intestinal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury causes inflammation and tissue damage and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Uncontrolled activation of the innate immune system through toll‐like receptors (Tlr) plays a key role in I/R‐mediated tissue damage but the underlying mechanisms have not been fully resolved. Here, we identify post‐transcriptional upregulation of the essential Tlr signalling molecule interleukin 1 receptor‐associated kinase (Irak) 1 as the causative mechanism for post‐ischemic immune hyper‐responsiveness of intestinal epithelial cells. Increased Irak1 protein levels enhanced epithelial ligand responsiveness, chemokine secretion, apoptosis and mucosal barrier disruption in an experimental intestinal I/R model using wild‐type, Irak1−/− and Tlr4−/− mice and ischemic human intestinal tissue. Irak1 accumulation under hypoxic conditions was associated with reduced K48 ubiquitination and enhanced Senp1‐mediated deSUMOylation of Irak1. Importantly, administration of microRNA (miR)‐146a or induction of miR‐146a by the phytochemical diindolylmethane controlled Irak1 upregulation and prevented immune hyper‐responsiveness in mouse and human tissue. These findings indicate that Irak1 accumulation triggers I/R‐induced epithelial immune hyper‐responsiveness and suggest that the induction of miR‐146a offers a promising strategy to prevent I/R tissue injury.

Establishment of intestinal homeostasis during the neonatal period

The intestinal mucosa faces the challenge of regulating the balance between immune tolerance towards commensal bacteria, environmental stimuli and food antigens on the one hand, and induction of efficient immune responses against invading pathogens on the other hand. This regulatory task is of critical importance to prevent inappropriate immune activation that may otherwise lead to chronic inflammation, tissue disruption and organ dysfunction. The most striking example for the efficacy of the adaptive nature of the intestinal mucosa is birth. Whereas the body surfaces are protected from environmental and microbial exposure during fetal life, bacterial colonization and contact with potent immunostimulatory substances start immediately after birth. In the present review, we summarize the current knowledge on the mechanisms underlying the transition of the intestinal mucosa during the neonatal period leading to the establishment of a stable, life-long host–microbial homeostasis. The environmental exposure and microbial colonization during the neonatal period, and also the influence of maternal milk on the immune protection of the mucosa and the role of antimicrobial peptides, are described. We further highlight the molecular mechanisms of innate immune tolerance in neonatal intestinal epithelium. Finally, we link the described immunoregulatory mechanisms to the increased susceptibility to inflammatory and infectious diseases during the neonatal period.

Intestinal Epithelial Cell Tyrosine Kinase 2 Transduces IL-22 Signals To Protect from Acute Colitis

In the intestinal tract, IL-22 activates STAT3 to promote intestinal epithelial cell (IEC) homeostasis and tissue healing. The mechanism has remained obscure, but we demonstrate that IL-22 acts via tyrosine kinase 2 (Tyk2), a member of the Jak family. Using a mouse model for colitis, we show that Tyk2 deficiency is associated with an altered composition of the gut microbiota and exacerbates inflammatory bowel disease. Colitic Tyk2−/− mice have less p-STAT3 in colon tissue and their IECs proliferate less efficiently. Tyk2-deficient primary IECs show reduced p-STAT3 in response to IL-22 stimulation, and expression of IL-22–STAT3 target genes is reduced in IECs from healthy and colitic Tyk2−/− mice. Experiments with conditional Tyk2−/− mice reveal that IEC-specific depletion of Tyk2 aggravates colitis. Disease symptoms can be alleviated by administering high doses of rIL-22–Fc, indicating that Tyk2 deficiency can be rescued via the IL-22 receptor complex. The pivotal function of Tyk2 in IL-22–dependent colitis was confirmed in Citrobacter rodentium–induced disease. Thus, Tyk2 protects against acute colitis in part by amplifying inflammation-induced epithelial IL-22 signaling to STAT3.

Noncanonical effects of IRF9 in intestinal inflammation: more than type I and type III interferons

ABSTRACT The interferon (IFN)-stimulated gene factor 3 (ISGF3) transcription factor with its Stat1, Stat2, and interferon regulatory factor 9 (IRF9) subunits is employed for transcriptional responses downstream of receptors for type I interferons (IFN-I) that include IFN-α and IFN-β and type III interferons (IFN-III), also called IFN-λ. Here, we show in a murine model of dextran sodium sulfate (DSS)-induced colitis that IRF9 deficiency protects animals, whereas the combined loss of IFN-I and IFN-III receptors worsens their condition. We explain the different phenotypes by demonstrating a function of IRF9 in a noncanonical transcriptional complex with Stat1, apart from IFN-I and IFN-III signaling. Together, Stat1 and IRF9 produce a proinflammatory activity that overrides the benefits of the IFN-III response on intestinal epithelial cells. Our results further suggest that the CXCL10 chemokine gene is an important mediator of this proinflammatory activity. We thus establish IFN-λ as a potentially anticolitogenic cytokine and propose an important role for IRF9 as a component of noncanonical Stat complexes in the development of colitis.

TRIF Signaling Drives Homeostatic Intestinal Epithelial Antimicrobial Peptide Expression

Recent results indicate a significant contribution of innate immune signaling to maintain mucosal homeostasis, but the precise underlying signal transduction pathways are ill-defined. By comparative analysis of intestinal epithelial cells isolated from conventionally raised and germ-free mice, as well as animals deficient in the adaptor molecules MyD88 and TRIF, the TLR3 and TLR4, as well as the type I and III IFN receptors, we demonstrate significant TLR-mediated signaling under homeostatic conditions. Surprisingly, homeostatic expression of Reg3γ and Paneth cell enteric antimicrobial peptides critically relied on TRIF and, in part, TLR3 but was independent of IFN receptor signaling. Reduced antimicrobial peptide expression was associated with significantly lower numbers of Paneth cells and a reduced Paneth cell maturation and differentiation factor expression in TRIF mutant compared with wild-type epithelium. This phenotype was not transferred to TRIF-sufficient germ-free animals during cohousing. Low antimicrobial peptide expression in TRIF-deficient mice caused reduced immediate killing of orally administered bacteria but was not associated with significant alterations in the overall composition of the enteric microbiota. The phenotype was rapidly restored in a TRIF-independent fashion after transient epithelial damage. Our results identify TRIF signaling as a truly homeostatic pathway to maintain intestinal epithelial barrier function revealing fundamental differences in the innate immune signaling between mucosal homeostasis and tissue repair.

Interleukin-13-Mediated Paneth Cell Degranulation and Antimicrobial Peptide Release

Paneth cell-derived enteric antimicrobial peptides significantly contribute to antibacterial host defense and host-microbial homeostasis. Regulation occurs by enzymatic processing and release into the small intestinal lumen, but the stimuli involved are incompletely understood. Here, the capacity of various microbial and immune stimuli to induce antimicrobial peptide release from small intestinal tissue was systematically evaluated using antibacterial activity testing, immunostaining for Paneth cell granules and mass spectrometry. We confirmed the stimulatory activity of the muscarinic receptor agonist carbachol and the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain ligand muramyl dipeptide. In contrast, no release of antibacterial activity was noted after treatment with the Toll-like receptor ligands poly(I:C), lipopolysaccharide or CpG, and the cytokines interleukin (IL)-15, IL-22, IL-28 and interferon-γ. Rapid Paneth cell degranulation and antimicrobial activity release, however, was observed after stimulation with the endogenous mediators IL-4 and IL-13. This process required phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase and was associated with protein kinase B phosphorylation in Paneth cells. Flow cytometric analysis confirmed expression of the IL-13 receptor α1 on isolated Paneth cells. Our findings identify a novel role of IL-13 as inducer of Paneth cell degranulation and enteric antimicrobial peptide release. IL-13 may thus contribute to mucosal antimicrobial host defense and host microbial homeostasis.