Biology subjects

Reinhold, D.

Publications and source records attributed to Reinhold, D..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

CD36 is a metabolic checkpoint for Th2 cell tissue residency during allergic airway inflammation

The prevalence of allergic diseases, including asthma, continues to rise in industrialized societies, yet the mechanisms sustaining pathogenic T helper 2 (Th2) responses remain incompletely understood. Here, we show that patients with allergic asthma exhibit elevated lipophilic volatile organic compounds in exhaled air and altered fatty acid-metabolism gene expression in sputum-derived Th2 cells. Using a mouse model of house dust mite-induced allergic airway inflammation, we find that the lipid transporter CD36 is dispensable for T follicular helper and germinal center B cell responses but is critical for maintaining lung-resident memory Th2 cells. CD36 regulates GATA3 and PPAR{gamma} expression in lung-resident memory Th2 cells and their interaction with type-2 conventional dendritic cells during airway inflammation. In human T cells, pharmacological inhibition of CD36 does not impair initial activation but blocks terminal Th2 differentiation. These findings identify CD36 as a metabolic checkpoint that sustains Th2 effector function and tissue residency, and establish lipid metabolism as a yet unrecognized therapeutic target in allergic asthma. SummaryAllergic asthma is marked by rising prevalence yet the drivers of persistent T helper 2 (Th2) immunity remain unclear. We show that asthma patients exhibit altered fatty acid-metabolism signatures in sputum Th2 cells and elevated lipophilic volatile organic compounds in exhaled air. In a mouse model of house dust mite-induced airway inflammation, the lipid transporter CD36 was dispensable for germinal center responses but essential for lung-resident memory Th2 cells, controlling GATA3 and PPAR{gamma} expression and promoting cDC2 interactions. Pharmacological inhibition of CD36 in human T cells preserved activation but blocked terminal Th2 differentiation. These findings identify CD36 as a metabolic checkpoint that sustains Th2 effector function and tissue residency, and nominate it as a therapeutic target in allergic asthma. O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=117 SRC="FIGDIR/small/676489v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (44K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@117da6eorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@105934corg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@109903corg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@dc9345_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

immunology↗

bioRxiv2024

Neuropathic pain and distinct CASPR2 autoantibody IgG subclasses drive neuronal hyperexcitability

Patients with autoantibodies (aAbs) against the contactin-associated protein-like 2 (CASPR2) suffer from a variety of clinical syndromes including neuropathic pain, in some patients even as the only symptom. CASPR2 is an adhesion protein of the neurexin IV family and part of the voltage-gated potassium channel complex (VGKC) in neurons of dorsal root ganglia (DRG). The subsequent pathological mechanisms following the binding of CASPR2 aAbs and their association with pain are only partially understood. CASPR2 aAbs are mainly of the IgG4 subclass. Previous studies have neglected subclass-dependent effects. Here we investigated 49 subclassified patient serum samples positive for CASPR2 aAbs. To unravel underlying molecular mechanisms, we used a combination of super-resolution lattice structural illumination microscopy (SIM2) and functional readouts by calcium imaging and electrophysiological recordings. CASPR2-positive patient sera subclassified in IgG4 together with at least one other IgG subclass (IgGX) and patients with only IgG4 were further subdivided into the pain and no pain group. Patient subclassification shed further light on the pathological mechanisms of CASPR2 aAbs. A decrease of CASPR2 expression after long-term exposure to CASPR2 aAbs was only observed for the patient group without pain. Upon withdrawal of the CASPR2 aAbs, CASPR2 expression returned to normal level. Structural alterations were obtained by increased distances between CASPR2 and associated potassium channels along DRG axons using high-resolution lattice SIM2 microscopy but only following binding of CASPR2 aAbs from patients with pain. Similarly, CASPR2 aAbs of patients with pain significantly increased overall neuronal excitability of cultured DRG neurons as measured by calcium imaging. Patch-clamp recordings revealed significantly decreased current amplitudes of voltage-gated potassium (Kv) channels after incubation with all four CASPR2 aAbs subclassifications with the most prominent effect of serum samples harboring IgG4 aAbs. Notably, a patient serum sample lacking IgG4 did not alter Kv channel function. Withdrawal of aAbs rescued Kv channel function to normal levels suggesting that the affected potassium channel function is rather due to a functional block of the VGKC rather than altered structural integrity of the VGKC. Taken together, we found IgG4 aAbs to be a major modifier of potassium channel function. The increase in DRG excitability is primarily due to impaired Kv channel conductance as a consequence of CASPR2 aAbs binding but additional and so far unidentified signal pathways contribute to this process in patients with neuropathic pain.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Autoimmune antibody-induced neuronal hyperactivity triggers pathological Tau in IgLON5 disease

Anti-IgLON5 disease is an autoimmune disease, in which autoantibodies (AABs) against the neuronal cell surface protein IgLON5 lead to profound brain dysfunction and Tau pathology. How -IgLON5 AABs cause neuronal Tau protein pathology and neurodegeneration remains unclear. We find that patient-derived -IgLON5 AABs cluster IgLON5 proteins with other cell surface proteins, leading to neuronal hyperactivity that triggers pathological Tau missorting and phosphorylation, typically observed early in Tau-related neurodegenerative diseases. In wildtype mice, -IgLON5 AABs induce hippocampal Tau phosphorylation and neuroinflammatory responses. Our findings establish a causal link between the -IgLON5 AABs and Tau pathology in anti-IgLON5 disease patients, and highlight the role of neuronal hyperactivity as a disease-overarching driver of Tau pathology and provide a potential target for therapeutic intervention. Teaser-IgLON5 autoantibodies induce clustering of neuronal cell surface proteins, leading to acute neuronal hyperactivity and Tau missorting.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2022

Plasma concentrations of anti-inflammatory cytokine TGF-β are associated with hippocampal structure related to explicit memory performance in older adults

Human cognitive abilities, and particularly hippocampus-dependent memory performance typically decline with increasing age. Immunosenescence, the age-related disintegration of the immune system, is increasingly coming into the focus of research as a considerable factor contributing to cognitive decline. In the present study, we investigated potential associations between plasma levels of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines and learning and memory performance as well as hippocampal anatomy in young and older adults. Plasma concentrations of the inflammation marker CRP as well as the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF- and the anti-inflammatory cytokine TGF-{beta}1 were measured in 142 healthy adults (57 young, 24.47 {+/-} 4.48 years; 85 older, 63.66 {+/-} 7.32 years) who performed tests of explicit memory (Verbal Learning and Memory Test, VLMT; Wechsler Memory Scale, Logical Memory, WMS) with an additional delayed recall test after 24 hours. Hippocampal volumetry and hippocampal subfield segmentation were performed using FreeSurfer, based on T1-weighted and high-resolution T2-weighted MR images. When investigating the relationship between memory performance, hippocampal structure, and plasma cytokine levels, we found that TGF- {beta}1 concentrations were positively correlated with the volumes of the hippocampal CA4-dentate gyrus region in older adults. These volumes were in turn positively associated with better performance in the WMS, particularly in the delayed memory test. Our results support the notion that endogenous anti-inflammatory mechanisms may act as protective factors in neurocognitive aging.

neuroscience↗