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Bansal A, Kooi C, Kalyanaraman K, Gill S, Thorne A, Chandramohan P, Necker-Brown A, Mostafa MM, Milani A, Leigh R, Newton R. Synergy between Interleukin-1 β, Interferon- γ, and Glucocorticoids to Induce TLR2 Expression Involves NF- κB, STAT1, and the Glucocorticoid Receptor. Mol Pharmacol 2023; 105:23-38. [PMID: 37863662 DOI: 10.1124/molpharm.123.000740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2023] [Revised: 09/14/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Glucocorticoids act via the glucocorticoid receptor (GR; NR3C1) to downregulate inflammatory gene expression and are effective treatments for mild to moderate asthma. However, in severe asthma and virus-induced exacerbations, glucocorticoid therapies are less efficacious, possibly due to reduced repressive ability and/or the increased expression of proinflammatory genes. In human A549 epithelial and primary human bronchial epithelial cells, toll-like receptor (TLR)-2 mRNA and protein were supra-additively induced by interleukin-1β (IL-1β) plus dexamethasone (IL-1β+Dex), interferon-γ (IFN-γ) plus dexamethasone (IFN-γ+Dex), and IL-1β plus IFN-γ plus dexamethasone (IL-1β+IFN-γ+Dex). Indeed, ∼34- to 2100-fold increases were apparent at 24 hours for IL-1β+IFN-γ+Dex, and this was greater than for any single or dual treatment. Using the A549 cell model, TLR2 induction by IL-1β+IFN-γ+Dex was antagonized by Org34517, a competitive GR antagonist. Further, when combined with IL-1β, IFN-γ, or IL-1β+IFN-γ, the enhancements by dexamethasone on TLR2 expression required GR. Likewise, inhibitor of κB kinase 2 inhibitors reduced IL-1β+IFN-γ+Dex-induced TLR2 expression, and TLR2 expression induced by IL-1β+Dex, with or without IFN-γ, required the nuclear factor (NF)-κB subunit, p65. Similarly, signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT)-1 phosphorylation and γ-interferon-activated sequence-dependent transcription were induced by IFN-γ These, along with IL-1β+IFN-γ+Dex-induced TLR2 expression, were inhibited by Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors. As IL-1β+IFN-γ+Dex-induced TLR2 expression also required STAT1, this study reveals cooperation between JAK-STAT1, NF-κB, and GR to upregulate TLR2 expression. Since TLR2 agonism elicits inflammatory responses, we propose that synergies involving TLR2 may occur within the cytokine milieu present in the immunopathology of glucocorticoid-resistant disease, and this could promote glucocorticoid resistance. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: This study highlights that in human pulmonary epithelial cells, glucocorticoids, when combined with the inflammatory cytokines interleukin-1β (IL-1β) and interferon-γ (IFN-γ), can synergistically induce the expression of inflammatory genes, such as TLR2. This effect involved positive combinatorial interactions between NF-κB/p65, glucocorticoid receptor, and JAK-STAT1 signaling to synergistically upregulate TLR2 expression. Thus, synergies involving glucocorticoid enhancement of TLR2 expression may occur in the immunopathology of glucocorticoid-resistant inflammatory diseases, including severe asthma.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akanksha Bansal
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Cora Kooi
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Keerthana Kalyanaraman
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Sachman Gill
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Andrew Thorne
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Priyanka Chandramohan
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Amandah Necker-Brown
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Mahmoud M Mostafa
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Arya Milani
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Richard Leigh
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Robert Newton
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology (A.B., K.K., S.G., A.T., P.C., A.N.-B., M.M.M., A.M., R.N.) and Medicine (C.K., R.L.), Lung Health Research Group, Snyder Institute for Chronic Diseases, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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