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Van Zeebroeck L, Arroyo Hornero R, Côrte-Real BF, Hamad I, Meissner TB, Kleinewietfeld M. Fast and Efficient Genome Editing of Human FOXP3 + Regulatory T Cells. Front Immunol 2021; 12:655122. [PMID: 34408743 PMCID: PMC8365355 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.655122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2021] [Accepted: 07/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
FOXP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) are central for maintaining peripheral tolerance and immune homeostasis. Because of their immunosuppressive characteristics, Tregs are a potential therapeutic target in various diseases such as autoimmunity, transplantation and infectious diseases like COVID-19. Numerous studies are currently exploring the potential of adoptive Treg therapy in different disease settings and novel genome editing techniques like CRISPR/Cas will likely widen possibilities to strengthen its efficacy. However, robust and expeditious protocols for genome editing of human Tregs are limited. Here, we describe a rapid and effective protocol for reaching high genome editing efficiencies in human Tregs without compromising cell integrity, suitable for potential therapeutic applications. By deletion of IL2RA encoding for IL-2 receptor α-chain (CD25) in Tregs, we demonstrated the applicability of the method for downstream functional assays and highlighted the importance for CD25 for in vitro suppressive function of human Tregs. Moreover, deletion of IL6RA (CD126) in human Tregs elicits cytokine unresponsiveness and thus may prevent IL-6-mediated instability of Tregs, making it an attractive target to potentially boost functionality in settings of adoptive Treg therapies to contain overreaching inflammation or autoimmunity. Thus, our rapid and efficient protocol for genome editing in human Tregs may advance possibilities for Treg-based cellular therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren Van Zeebroeck
- Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Laboratory of Translational Immunomodulation, Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Center for Inflammation Research (IRC), Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Department of Immunology, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - Rebeca Arroyo Hornero
- Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Laboratory of Translational Immunomodulation, Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Center for Inflammation Research (IRC), Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Department of Immunology, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - Beatriz F. Côrte-Real
- Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Laboratory of Translational Immunomodulation, Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Center for Inflammation Research (IRC), Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Department of Immunology, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - Ibrahim Hamad
- Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Laboratory of Translational Immunomodulation, Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Center for Inflammation Research (IRC), Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Department of Immunology, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
| | - Torsten B. Meissner
- Department of Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Markus Kleinewietfeld
- Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Laboratory of Translational Immunomodulation, Vlaams Instituut voor Biotechnologie (VIB) Center for Inflammation Research (IRC), Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
- Department of Immunology, Biomedical Research Institute, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium
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Shevyrev D, Tereshchenko V, Kozlov V, Sizikov A, Chumasova O, Koksharova V. T-regulatory cells from patients with rheumatoid arthritis retain suppressor functions in vitro. Exp Ther Med 2021; 21:209. [PMID: 33500700 PMCID: PMC7818555 DOI: 10.3892/etm.2021.9641] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2020] [Accepted: 07/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic disease of connective tissue caused by intolerance to self-antigens. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are key players in maintaining autotolerance through a variety of suppressor mechanisms. RA is generally believed to develop due to disorders in Tregs; however, there is no consensus on this issue. Thus, the present study focused on phenotypical analysis of Treg cells and their ability to suppress CD4+ and CD8+ cell proliferation. The present study used peripheral blood samples from 21 patients with RA and 22 healthy donors. The CD25+FoxP3+ subpopulation of Tregs was analyzed using flow cytometry to evaluate the expression of CTLA-4, PD-L1, HLA-DR, CCR4, CD86 and RORyt. Tregs suppressor activity was calculated in terms of suppression of the proliferation of CD4+ and CD8+ lymphocytes in vitro. Suppressor activity of the total Treg population did not differ between patients with RA and healthy donors. However, the patients had elevated CD25loFoxP3+ levels and lower CD25hiFoxP3+ levels; in addition, they had more activated Tregs expressing PD-L1, HLA-DR, CCR4 and CD86. The surface expression of CTLA-4 was below the reference level. The patients also had transitional FoxP3+RORyt+ cells and elevated CD4+RORyt+ levels, which were highly correlated with disease activity. These results show that in RA, Treg cells are activated and have an immunosuppressive activity. However, it is the transitional FoxP3+RORyt+ cells and increased CD4+RORyt+ percentages in peripheral blood that appear to be associated with the pathological conversion of some Treg cells into Th-17. This process appears to be key in RA pathogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniil Shevyrev
- Laboratory of Clinical Immunopathology, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, Research Institute of Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, Novosibirsk 630099, Russia
| | - Valeriy Tereshchenko
- Laboratory of Molecular Immunology, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, Research Institute of Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, Novosibirsk 630099, Russia
| | - Vladimir Kozlov
- Laboratory of Clinical Immunopathology, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, Research Institute of Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, Novosibirsk 630099, Russia
| | - Alexey Sizikov
- Rheumatology Department, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, Research Institute of Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, Novosibirsk 630099, Russia
| | - Oksana Chumasova
- Rheumatology Department, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, Research Institute of Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, Novosibirsk 630099, Russia
| | - Veroniсa Koksharova
- Rheumatology Department, Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution, Research Institute of Fundamental and Clinical Immunology, Novosibirsk 630099, Russia
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Kanjana K, Chevaisrakul P, Matangkasombut P, Paisooksantivatana K, Lumjiaktase P. Inhibitory activity of FOXP3+ regulatory T cells reveals high specificity for displaying immune tolerance in remission state rheumatoid arthritis. Sci Rep 2020; 10:19789. [PMID: 33188235 PMCID: PMC7666192 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-76168-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Immune regulation status may indicate immunological remission in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). This cross-sectional study aimed to determine the Regulatory T cell (Treg) properties, together with 14 plasma cytokines levels between active RA and clinical remission patients. Peripheral blood (PB) Foxp3+ Treg was collected from RA patients for determination of Treg inhibitory activity using a co-culture system. Other PB T cell types and plasma cytokines were determined by flow-cytometry. The Treg results were analyzed according to the disease activity score-28 (DAS28). Then sensitivity and specificity were calculated for the indication of the remission status. The number and inhibitory activity of Treg are higher in the clinical remission as compared to the active RA (p value < 0.0001). Also, Treg: CD4+CD25+CD127+ cell ratio demonstrates the similar result (p value < 0.05). Treg inhibitory activity is inversely correlated with the DAS28. Specificity and positive likelihood ratio of inhibitory activity for indicating remission status are 92.31% (95% CI 63.97-99.81) and 11.14 (95% CI 1.67-74.14), respectively. Treg inhibitory activity is a promising prognostic marker and probably represents the immunological remission status in RA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Korawit Kanjana
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Rama 6 Road, 270 Thung Phaya Thai, Ratchathewi, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
- Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Immunology, Center for Immunology and Inflammatory Diseases, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Parawee Chevaisrakul
- Division of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Ponpan Matangkasombut
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Karan Paisooksantivatana
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Rama 6 Road, 270 Thung Phaya Thai, Ratchathewi, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand
| | - Putthapoom Lumjiaktase
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Rama 6 Road, 270 Thung Phaya Thai, Ratchathewi, Bangkok, 10400, Thailand.
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Kanjana K, Chevaisrakul P, Matangkasombut P, Paisooksantivatana K, Lumjiaktase P. Regulatory T Cell Suppressive Activity Predicts Disease Relapse During Disease-Modifying Anti-rheumatic Drug Dose Reduction in Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Prospective Cohort Study. Front Med (Lausanne) 2020; 7:25. [PMID: 32118010 PMCID: PMC7011614 DOI: 10.3389/fmed.2020.00025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
When the dose of conventional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (cDMARDs) is tapered in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients who achieve sustained remission, biomarkers for predicting disease relapse may be needed. A prospective, unblinded cohort study was conducted in nine RA patients with remission. Peripheral blood samples were collected at baseline and at 6, 12, and 24 weeks after cDMARD dose reduction (dose of combination regimens reduced to 50%) to determine the number of regulatory Foxp3+T cells (Tregs) and other T cell subpopulations as well as Treg suppressive activity. Additionally, plasma levels of 14 cytokines at each time-point were measured via flow cytometry. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to identify the factor(s) associated with RA relapse during the observational period. In univariate analysis, Treg suppression and DAS28 and VAS scores were associated with RA relapse after cDMARD dose tapering. However, in multivariate analysis, only Treg suppressive activity (<42%) was found to be an independent factor associated with RA relapse after cDMARD dose reduction to 50%. Of all patients who had ≥42% Treg suppressive activity during cDMAD reduction, three-fourth patients remained in the remission stage for 24 weeks. Treg suppressive activity (<42%) in RA patients with remission could be a potential biomarker for predicting RA relapse after cDMARD dose reduction, especially over a short-term period (24 weeks).
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Affiliation(s)
- Korawit Kanjana
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Parawee Chevaisrakul
- Division of Allergy, Immunology and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Ponpan Matangkasombut
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Karan Paisooksantivatana
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Putthapoom Lumjiaktase
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand
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