Effect of Oxidized Dextran on Cytokine Production and Activation of IRF3 Transcription Factor in Macrophages from Mice of Opposite Strains with Different Sensitivity to Tuberculosis Infection

Transcriptional control of metabolism by interferon regulatory factors

Interferon regulatory factors (IRFs) comprise a family of nine transcription factors in mammals. IRFs exert broad effects on almost all aspects of immunity but are best known for their role in the antiviral response. Over the past two decades, IRFs have been implicated in metabolic physiology and pathophysiology, partly as a result of their known functions in immune cells, but also because of direct actions in adipocytes, hepatocytes, myocytes and neurons. This Review focuses predominantly on IRF3 and IRF4, which have been the subject of the most intense investigation in this area. IRF3 is located in the cytosol and undergoes activation and nuclear translocation in response to various signals, including stimulation of Toll-like receptors, RIG-I-like receptors and the cGAS-STING pathways. IRF3 promotes weight gain, primarily by inhibiting adipose thermogenesis, and also induces inflammation and insulin resistance using both weight-dependent and weight-independent mechanisms. IRF4, meanwhile, is generally pro-thermogenic and anti-inflammatory and has profound effects on lipogenesis and lipolysis. Finally, new data are emerging on the role of other IRF family members in metabolic homeostasis. Taken together, data indicate that IRFs serve as critical yet underappreciated integrators of metabolic and inflammatory stress.

The Effects of Immunosuppressive Factors on Primary Dendritic Cells from C57BL/6 and CBA Mice

Introduction

Dendritic cells (DCs) control immune responses by modulating T and B cells towards effector or tolerogenic responses. In this study, we evaluated the effects of different immunosuppressive molecules on the phenotypic and functional characteristics of primary dendritic cells from C57BL/6 and CBA mice.

Methods

DCs were derived from bone marrow cells in the presence of rmGM-CSF and rmIL-4. DCs were then treated with different types of immunosuppressive molecules (rmIL-10, rmTGF-β, and BAY 11-7082) and cocultured with syngeneic splenocytes. The amount of CD4+CD25hiFoxP3+ Tregs, IL-10 expression, and proliferation were evaluated.

Results

Tolerogenic factors were found to have different effects on DCs C57Bl/6 mice. In C57Bl/6 mice, BAY 11-7082 alone had no effect on the expression of DC maturation molecules (CD80, CD86). Transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β), alone and in combination with BAY 11-7082, reduced the expression of these molecules. Cocultivation of DCs with splenocytes in the presence of TGF-β and BAY 11-7082 favored regulatory T cell (CD4+CD25hiFoxP3+) differentiation and disfavored differentiation of CD4+ T cells producing IL-10. In CBA mice, we found that rmIL-10 and rmTGF-β have a weak effect on maturation of DCs and their functional properties to induce Treg cells and IL-10 production.

Conclusion

These results indicate that TGF-β and IL-10 have different effects on the phenotypic and functional characteristics of DCs and that the NF-κB inhibitor, BAY 11-7082, has no synergistic effect on these treatments. In mice with an opposite nature of the immune response, the effects of immunoregulatory cytokines (IL-10 and TGF-b) differ on maturation of dendritic cells.