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Mebratu YA, Jones JT, Liu C, Negasi ZH, Rahman M, Rojas-Quintero J, O’Connor GT, Gao W, Dupuis J, Cho MH, Litonjua AA, Randell S, Tesfaigzi Y. Bik promotes proteasomal degradation to control low-grade inflammation. J Clin Invest 2023; 134:e170594. [PMID: 38113109 PMCID: PMC10866658 DOI: 10.1172/jci170594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023] Open
Abstract
Although chronic low-grade inflammation does not cause immediate clinical symptoms, over the longer term, it can enhance other insults or age-dependent damage to organ systems and thereby contribute to age-related disorders, such as respiratory disorders, heart disease, metabolic disorders, autoimmunity, and cancer. However, the molecular mechanisms governing low-level inflammation are largely unknown. We discovered that Bcl-2-interacting killer (Bik) deficiency causes low-level inflammation even at baseline and the development of spontaneous emphysema in female but not male mice. Similarly, a single nucleotide polymorphism that reduced Bik levels was associated with increased inflammation and enhanced decline in lung function in humans. Transgenic expression of Bik in the airways of Bik-deficient mice inhibited allergen- or LPS-induced lung inflammation and reversed emphysema in female mice. Bik deficiency increased nuclear but not cytosolic p65 levels because Bik, by modifying the BH4 domain of Bcl-2, interacted with regulatory particle non-ATPase 1 (RPN1) and RPN2 and enhanced proteasomal degradation of nuclear proteins. Bik deficiency increased inflammation primarily in females because Bcl-2 and Bik levels were reduced in lung tissues and airway cells of female compared with male mice. Therefore, controlling low-grade inflammation by modifying the unappreciated role of Bik and Bcl-2 in facilitating proteasomal degradation of nuclear proteins may be crucial in treating chronic age-related diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yohannes A. Mebratu
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Jane T. Jones
- University Geisel School of Medicine, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Congjian Liu
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Zerihun H. Negasi
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Mizanur Rahman
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Joselyn Rojas-Quintero
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - George T. O’Connor
- Pulmonary Center, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute’s (NHLBI’s) Framingham Heart Study, Framingham, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Wei Gao
- Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Josée Dupuis
- Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Michael H. Cho
- Channing Division of Network Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Augusto A. Litonjua
- Division of Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York, USA
| | - Scott Randell
- Marsico Lung Institute, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
| | - Yohannes Tesfaigzi
- Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Medicine, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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