STAT5 protein negatively regulates T follicular helper (Tfh) cell generation and function. J Biol Chem 2012 Mar 30;287(14):11234-9
Date
02/10/2012Pubmed ID
22318729Pubmed Central ID
PMC3322890DOI
10.1074/jbc.M111.324046Scopus ID
2-s2.0-84859487740 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 200 CitationsAbstract
Recent work has identified a new subset of CD4(+) T cells named as Tfh cells that are localized in germinal centers and critical in germinal center formation. Tfh cell differentiation is regulated by IL-6 and IL-21, possibly via STAT3 factor, and B cell lymphoma 6 (Bcl6) is specifically expressed in Tfh cells and required for their lineage specification. In the current study, we characterized the role of STAT5 in Tfh cell development. We found that a constitutively active form of STAT5 effectively inhibited Tfh differentiation by suppressing the expression of Tfh-associated factors (CXC motif) receptor 5 (CXCR5), musculoaponeurotic fibrosarcoma (c-Maf), Bcl6, basic leucine zipper transcription factor ATF-like (Batf), and IL-21, and STAT5 deficiency greatly enhanced Tfh gene expression. Importantly, STAT5 regulated the expression of Tfh cell suppressor factor B lymphocyte-induced maturation protein 1 (Blimp-1); STAT5 deficiency impaired Blimp-1 expression and resulted in elevated expression of Tfh-specific genes. Similarly, inhibition of IL-2 potentiated Tfh generation, associated with dampened Blimp-1 expression; Blimp-1 overexpression inhibited Tfh gene expression in Stat5-deficient T cells, suggesting that the IL-2/STAT5 axis functions to regulate Blimp-1 expression. In vivo, deletion of STAT5 in CD4(+) T cells resulted in enhanced development of Tfh cells and germinal center B cells and led to an impairment of B cell tolerance in a well defined mouse tolerance model. Taken together, this study demonstrates that STAT5 controls Tfh differentiation.
Author List
Nurieva RI, Podd A, Chen Y, Alekseev AM, Yu M, Qi X, Huang H, Wen R, Wang J, Li HS, Watowich SS, Qi H, Dong C, Wang DAuthor
Demin Wang PhD Professor in the Microbiology and Immunology department at Medical College of WisconsinMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AnimalsB-Lymphocytes
CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes
Cell Differentiation
Mice
Positive Regulatory Domain I-Binding Factor 1
STAT5 Transcription Factor
Transcription Factors
Up-Regulation
