Biology subjects

Thornton, E. E.

Publications and source records attributed to Thornton, E. E..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2023

MHC class II antigen presentation by intestinal epithelial cells fine-tunes bacteria-reactive CD4 T cell responses

Although intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) can express major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC II), especially during intestinal inflammation, it remains unclear if antigen presentation by IECs favours pro- or anti-inflammatory CD4+ T cell responses. Using selective gene ablation of MHC II in IECs and IEC organoid cultures, we assessed the impact of MHC II expression by IECs on CD4+ T cell responses and disease outcomes in response to enteric bacterial pathogens. We found that intestinal bacterial infections elicit inflammatory cues that greatly increase expression of MHC II processing and presentation molecules in colonic IECs. Whilst IEC MHC II expression had little impact on disease severity following Citrobacter rodentium or Helicobacter hepaticus infection, using a colonic IEC organoid-CD4+ T cell co-culture system, we demonstrate that IECs can activate antigen-specific CD4+ T cells in an MHC II-dependent manner, modulating both regulatory and effector Th cell subsets. Furthermore, we assessed adoptively transferred H. hepaticus-specific CD4+ T cells during intestinal inflammation in vivo and report that IEC MHC II expression dampens pro-inflammatory effector Th cells. Our findings indicate that IECs can function as non-conventional antigen presenting cells and that IEC MHC II expression fine-tunes local effector CD4+ T cell responses during intestinal inflammation.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2022

A conserved population of MHC II-restricted, innate-like, commensal-reactive T cells in the gut of humans and mice

Interactions with commensal microbes shape host immunity on multiple levels and are recognized to play a pivotal role in human health and disease. In this study, we show that MHC-II restricted, commensal-reactive T cells in the colon of both humans and mice acquire transcriptional and functional characteristics typically associated with innate-like T cells, including the expression of the key transcription factor PLZF and the ability to respond to cytokines including IL-12, IL-18 and IL-23 in a TCR-independent manner. These MHC-II restricted, innate-like, commensal-reactive T cells (TMIC) are endowed with a polyfunctional effector potential spanning classic Th1- and Th17-cytokines, cytotoxic molecules as well as regulators of epithelial homeostasis and represent an abundant and conserved cell population in the human and murine colon. T cells with the TMIC phenotype were increased in ulcerative colitis patients and their presence aggravated pathology in DSS-treated mice, pointing towards a pathogenic role in colitis. Our findings add TMIC cells to the expanding spectrum of innate-like immune cells positioned at the frontline of intestinal immune surveillance, capable of acting as sentinels of microbes and the local cytokine milieu.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2022

Intestinal lamina propria supports acquired eTreg suppressor function

The intestinal immune system must maintain tolerance to commensal microbiota and self antigens whilst defending against invading pathogens. Recognising how homeostasis is established and maintained in a complex immune environment such as the gut is critical to understanding how to re-establish tolerance once broken in inflammatory disorders. Peripherally induced regulatory T cells (Tregs) play a key role in homeostasis. In intestinal tissue, Tregs work in concert with a diverse network of cells but which cellular interactions occur to instruct Treg adaptation and acquisition of distinct Treg suppressor function is not clear. We used two-photon in vivo live imaging and NICHE-seq [1] to deep phenotype Helicobacter hepaticus (Hh)-specific Tregs with shared specificity but distinct spatially compartmentalised functions in the tissue. We show transcriptionally distinct central Treg (cTreg) and effector Treg (eTreg) populations in lymphoid versus gut tissue. The lamina propria (LP), and not embedded lymphoid aggregates (LA), is the key location of acquired immune suppressor eTreg function. Tregs recruited to the LP compartment are the dominant interacting cell type and acquired a more effector Treg profile with upregulation of Areg, Gzmb, Icos, Tigit, Tnfrsf4 (OX40), and Tnfrsf18 (GITR). We identify IL-1{beta}+ macrophages, CD206+ macrophages, and ILC2 in the LP niche as the key players governing Treg survival and function. In contrast, LA, dominated by interactions with ILC3s and populations of IL-6+ DCs, are equipped to tip the balance towards a pro-inflammatory response. By functionally isolating the gut tissue from secondary lymphoid organs, we show that eTregs maintain their phenotype in the context of inflammatory insult. Blocking their key effector molecule, IL-10, results in locally differentiated Th17 cell proliferation without overt inflammation due to local IL-10 independent mechanisms that constrain inflammation. Our results reveal a previously unrecognised spatial mechanism of tolerance, and demonstrate how knowledge of local interactions can guide cell function and potentially be manipulated for the next generation of tolerance-inducing therapies.

immunology↗