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Chau KM, Dominic A, Davis EL, Kotla S, Berrios ET, Fahim A, Arunesh A, Li S, Zhao D, Chen K, Davis AR, Nguyen MTH, Wang Y, Evans SE, Wang G, Cooke JP, Abe JI, Huston DP, Le NT. TNIK regulation of interferon signaling and endothelial cell response to virus infection. Front Cardiovasc Med 2024; 10:1213428. [PMID: 38264262 PMCID: PMC10803426 DOI: 10.3389/fcvm.2023.1213428] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 01/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Traf2 and Nck-interacting kinase (TNIK) is known for its regulatory role in various processes within cancer cells. However, its role within endothelial cells (ECs) has remained relatively unexplored. Methods Leveraging RNA-seq data and Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA), we probed the potential impact of TNIK depletion on ECs. Results Examination of RNA-seq data uncovered more than 450 Differentially Expressed Genes (DEGs) in TNIK-depleted ECs, displaying a fold change exceeding 2 with a false discovery rate (FDR) below 0.05. IPA analysis unveiled that TNIK depletion leads to the inhibition of the interferon (IFN) pathway [-log (p-value) >11], downregulation of IFN-related genes, and inhibition of Hypercytokinemia/Hyperchemokinemia [-log (p-value) >8]. The validation process encompassed qRT-PCR to evaluate mRNA expression of crucial IFN-related genes, immunoblotting to gauge STAT1 and STAT2 protein levels, and ELISA for the quantification of IFN and cytokine secretion in siTNIK-depleted ECs. These assessments consistently revealed substantial reductions upon TNIK depletion. When transducing HUVECs with replication incompetent E1-E4 deleted adenovirus expressing green fluorescent protein (Ad-GFP), it was demonstrated that TNIK depletion did not affect the uptake of Ad-GFP. Nonetheless, TNIK depletion induced cytopathic effects (CPE) in ECs transduced with wild-type human adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad-WT). Summary Our findings suggest that TNIK plays a crucial role in regulating the EC response to virus infections through modulation of the IFN pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Khanh M. Chau
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Abishai Dominic
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, College of Medicine Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Eleanor L. Davis
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Sivareddy Kotla
- Department of Cardiology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Estefani Turcios Berrios
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Arsany Fahim
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Ashwin Arunesh
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Shengyu Li
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Dongyu Zhao
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Medicine, College of Medicine Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Kaifu Chen
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Alan R. Davis
- Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Baylor College of Medicine, College Station, TX, United States
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Minh T. H. Nguyen
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Yongxing Wang
- Department of Pulmonary Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Scott E. Evans
- Department of Pulmonary Medicine, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Guangyu Wang
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
| | - John P. Cooke
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Jun-ichi Abe
- Department of Cardiology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, United States
| | - David P. Huston
- Department of Microbial Pathogenesis and Immunology, College of Medicine Texas A&M University, College Station, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Nhat-Tu Le
- Department of Cardiovascular Sciences, Center for Cardiovascular Sciences, Academic Institute, Houston Methodist Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medical College, Houston, TX, United States
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