The influence of IL1RN VNTR polymorphism on HPV infection among some tribal communities

Identifying signatures of positive selection in human populations from North Africa

Because of its location, North Africa (NA) has witnessed continuous demographic movements with an impact on the genomes of present-day human populations. Genomic data describe a complex scenario with varying proportions of at least four main ancestry components: Maghrebi, Middle Eastern-, European-, and West-and-East-African-like. However, the footprint of positive selection in NA has not been studied. Here, we compile genome-wide genotyping data from 190 North Africans and individuals from surrounding populations, investigate for signatures of positive selection using allele frequencies and linkage disequilibrium-based methods and infer ancestry proportions to discern adaptive admixture from post-admixture selection events. Our results show private candidate genes for selection in NA involved in insulin processing (KIF5A), immune function (KIF5A, IL1RN, TLR3), and haemoglobin phenotypes (BCL11A). We also detect signatures of positive selection related to skin pigmentation (SLC24A5, KITLG), and immunity function (IL1R1, CD44, JAK1) shared with European populations and candidate genes associated with haemoglobin phenotypes (HPSE2, HBE1, HBG2), other immune-related (DOCK2) traits, and insulin processing (GLIS3) traits shared with West and East African populations. Finally, the SLC8A1 gene, which codifies for a sodium-calcium exchanger, was the only candidate identified under post-admixture selection in Western NA.

Interleukin-1 receptor antagonist: a promising cytokine against human squamous cell carcinomas

Inflammation, especially chronic inflammation, is closely linked to tumor development. As essential chronic inflammatory cytokines, the interleukin family plays a key role in inflammatory infections and malignancies. The interleukin-1 (IL-1) receptor antagonist (IL1RA), as a naturally occurring receptor antagonist, is the first discovered and can compete with IL-1 in binding to the receptor. Recent studies have revealed the association of the polymorphisms in IL1RA with an increased risk of squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs), including squamous cell carcinoma of the head and neck (SCCHN), cervical squamous cell carcinoma, cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cSCC), esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), and bronchus squamous cell carcinoma. Here, we reviewed the antitumor potential of IL1RA as an IL-1-targeted inhibitor.

Systematic Analysis of IL-1 Cytokine Signaling Suppression by HPV16 Oncoproteins

The human papillomavirus (HPV) E6 and E7 oncogenes are expressed at all stages of HPV-mediated carcinogenesis and are essential drivers of cancers caused by high-risk HPV. Some of the activities of HPV E6 and E7, such as their interactions with host cellular tumor suppressors, have been characterized extensively. There is less information about how high-risk HPV E6 and E7 alter cellular responses to cytokines that are present in HPV-infected tissues and are an important component of the tumor microenvironment. We used several models of HPV oncoprotein activity to assess how HPV16 E6 and E7 alter the cellular response to the proinflammatory cytokine IL-1β. Models of early stage HPV infection and of established HPV-positive head and neck cancers exhibited similar dysregulation of IL-1 pathway genes and suppressed transcriptional responses to IL-1β treatment. Such overlap in cell responses supports that changes induced by HPV16 E6 and E7 early in infection could persist and contribute to a dysregulated immune environment throughout carcinogenesis. HPV16 E6 and E7 also drove the upregulation of several suppressors of IL-1 cytokine signaling, including SIGIRR, both in primary keratinocytes and in cancer cells. SIGIRR knockout was insufficient to increase IL-1β-dependent gene expression in the presence of HPV16 E6 and E7, suggesting that multiple suppressors of IL-1 signaling contribute to dampened IL-1 responses in HPV16-positive cells. IMPORTANCE Human papillomavirus (HPV) infection is responsible for nearly 5% of the worldwide cancer burden. HPV-positive tumors develop over years to decades in tissues that are subject to frequent stimulation by proinflammatory cytokines. However, the effects of HPV oncoproteins on the cellular response to cytokine stimulation are not well defined. We analyzed IL-1 cytokine signaling in several models of HPV biology and disease. We found that HPV16 E6 and E7 oncoproteins mediate a broad and potent suppression of cellular responses to IL-1β in models of both early and late stages of carcinogenesis. Our data provide a resource for future investigation of IL-1 signaling in HPV-positive cells and cancers.