Yin and yang of interleukin-17 in host immunity to infection [version 1; referees: 2 approved]

The interleukin-17 (IL-17) family cytokines, such as IL-17A and IL-17F, play important protective roles in host immune response to a variety of infections such as bacterial, fungal, parasitic, and viral. The IL-17R signaling and downstream pathways mediate induction of proinflammatory molecules which participate in control of these pathogens. However, the production of IL-17 can also mediate pathology and inflammation associated with infections. In this review, we will discuss the yin-and-yang roles of IL-17 in host immunity to pathogens

Saponin TQL1055 adjuvant-containing vaccine confers protection upon Mycobacterium tuberculosis challenge in mice

Tuberculosis (TB), caused by the intracellular pathoge

Development and testing of a spray-dried tuberculosis vaccine candidate in a mouse model

Converting a vaccine into a thermostable dry powder is advantageous as it reduces the resource burden linked with the cold chain and provides flexibility in dosage and administration through different routes. Such a dry powder presentation may be especially useful in the development of a vaccine towards the respiratory infectious disease tuberculosis (TB). This study assesses the immunogenicity and protective efficacy of spray-dried ID93+GLA-SE, a promising TB vaccine candidate, agains

S100A8/A9 regulates CD11b expression and neutrophil recruitment during chronic tuberculosis

Neutrophil accumulation is associated with lung pathology during active tuberculosis (ATB). However, the molecular mechanism or mechanisms by which neutrophils accumulate in the lung and contribute to TB immunopathology are not fully delineated. Using the well-established mouse model of TB, our new data provide evidence that the alarmin S100A8/A9 mediates neutrophil accumulation during progression to chronic TB. Depletion of neutrophils or S100A8/A9 deficiency resulted in improved Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) control during chronic but not acute TB. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that, following Mtb infection, S100A8/A9 expression is required for upregulation of the integrin molecule CD11b specifically on neutrophils, mediating their accumulation during chronic TB disease. These findings are further substantiated by increased expression of S100A8 and S100A9 mRNA in whole blood in human TB progressors when compared with nonprogressors and rapidly decreased S100A8/A9 protein levels in the serum upon TB treatment. Furthermore, we demonstrate that S100A8/A9 serum levels along with chemokines are useful in distinguishing between ATB and asymptomatic Mtb-infected latent individuals. Thus, our results support targeting S100A8/A9 pathways as host-directed therapy for TB

Interleukin-17 limits hypoxia-inducible factor 1α and development of hypoxic granulomas during tuberculosis

Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) is a global health threat, compounded by the emergence of drug-resistant strains. A hallmark of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) is the formation of hypoxic necrotic granulomas, which upon disintegration, release infectious Mtb. Furthermore, hypoxic necrotic granulomas are associated with increased disease severity and provide a niche for drug-resistant Mtb. However, the host immune responses that promote the development of hypoxic TB granulomas are not well described. Using a necrotic Mtb mouse model, we show that loss of Mtb virulence factors, such as phenolic glycolipids, decreases the production of the proinflammatory cytokine IL-17 (also referred to as IL-17A). IL-17 production negatively regulates the development of hypoxic TB granulomas by limiting the expression of the transcription factor hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF1α). In human TB patients, HIF1α mRNA expression is increased. Through genotyping and association analyses in human samples, we identified a link between the single nucleotide polymorphism rs2275913 in the IL-17 promoter (-197G/G), which is associated with decreased IL-17 production upon stimulation with Mtb cell wall. Together, our data highlight a potentially novel role for IL-17 in limiting the development of hypoxic necrotic granulomas and reducing disease severity in TB

Targeting dendritic cells to accelerate T-cell activation overcomes a bottleneck in tuberculosis vaccine efficacy

The development of a tuberculosis (TB) vaccine that induces sterilizing immunity to Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection has been elusive. Absence of sterilizing immunity induced by TB vaccines may be due to delayed activation of mucosal dendritic cells (DCs), and subsequent delay in antigen presentation and activation of vaccine-induced CD4[superscript +] T-cell responses. Here we show that pulmonary delivery of activated M. tuberculosis antigen-primed DCs into vaccinated mice, at the time of M. tuberculosis exposure, can overcome the delay in accumulation of vaccine-induced CD4[superscript +] T-cell responses. In addition, activating endogenous host CD103[superscript +] DCs and the CD40–CD40L pathway can similarly induce rapid accumulation of vaccine-induced lung CD4[superscript +] T-cell responses and limit early M. tuberculosis growth. Thus, our study provides proof of concept that targeting mucosal DCs can accelerate vaccine-induced T-cell responses on M. tuberculosis infection, and provide insights to overcome bottlenecks in TB vaccine efficacy.National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (grant HL105427)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (grant AI127172)United States. Army Research Office. Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies (contract W911NF-13-D-0001)Howard Hughes Medical Institute (Investigator

Myeloid cell interferon responses correlate with clearance of SARS-CoV-2

Emergence of mutant SARS-CoV-2 strains associated with an increased risk of COVID-19-related death necessitates better understanding of the early viral dynamics, host responses and immunopathology. Single cell RNAseq (scRNAseq) allows for the study of individual cells, uncovering heterogeneous and variable responses to environment, infection and inflammation. While studies have reported immune profiling using scRNAseq in terminal human COVID-19 patients, performing longitudinal immune cell dynamics in humans is challenging. Macaques are a suitable model of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Our longitudinal scRNAseq of bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cell suspensions from young rhesus macaques infected with SARS-CoV-2 (n = 6) demonstrates dynamic changes in transcriptional landscape 3 days post- SARS-CoV-2-infection (3dpi; peak viremia), relative to 14-17dpi (recovery phase) and pre-infection (baseline) showing accumulation of distinct populations of both macrophages and T-lymphocytes expressing strong interferon-driven inflammatory gene signature at 3dpi. Type I interferon response is induced in the plasmacytoid dendritic cells with appearance of a distinct HLAD

Lung epithelial signaling mediates early vaccine-induced CD4 + T cell activation and Mycobacterium tuberculosis control

Tuberculosis (TB) is one of the leading causes of death due to a single infectious agent. The development of a TB vaccine that induces durable and effective immunity to Mycobacterium tuberculosis

A protective role for type I interferon signaling following infection with <i>Mycobacterium tuberculosis</i> carrying the rifampicin drug resistance-conferring RpoB mutation H445Y

Interleukin-1 (IL-1) signaling is essential for controlling virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection since antagonism of this pathway leads to exacerbated pathology and increased susceptibility. In contrast, the triggering of type I interferon (IFN) signaling is associated with the progression of tuberculosis (TB) disease and linked with negative regulation of IL-1 signaling. However, mice lacking IL-1 signaling can control Mtb infection if infected with an Mtb strain carrying the rifampin-resistance conferring mutation H445Y in its RNA polymerase β subunit (rpoB-H445Y Mtb). The mechanisms that govern protection in the absence of IL-1 signaling during rpoB-H445Y Mtb infection are unknown. In this study, we show that in the absence of IL-1 signaling, type I IFN signaling controls rpoB-H445Y Mtb replication, lung pathology, and excessive myeloid cell infiltration. Additionally, type I IFN is produced predominantly by monocytes and recruited macrophages and acts on LysM-expressing cells to drive protection through nitric oxide (NO) production to restrict intracellular rpoB-H445Y Mtb. These findings reveal an unexpected protective role for type I IFN signaling in compensating for deficiencies in IL-1 pathways during rpoB-H445Y Mtb infection

Toll-Like Receptor 2 Targeted Rectification of Impaired CD8⁺ T Cell Functions in Experimental Leishmania donovani Infection Reinstates Host Protection.

Leishmania donovani, a protozoan parasite, causes the disease visceral leishmanisis (VL), characterized by inappropriate CD8+ T-cell activation. Therefore, we examined whether the Toll-like Receptor 2 (TLR2) ligand Ara-LAM, a cell wall glycolipid from non-pathogenic Mycobacterium smegmatis, would restore CD8+ T-cell function during VL. We observed that by efficient upregulation of TLR2 signaling-mediated NF-κB translocation and MAPK signaling in CD8+ T-cells (CD25+CD28+IL-12R+IFN-γR+), Ara-LAM triggered signaling resulted in the activation of T-bet, which in turn, induced transcription favourable histone modification at the IFN-γ, perforin, granzyme-B promoter regions in CD8+ T-cells. Thus, we conclude that Ara-LAM induced efficient activation of effector CD8+ T-cells by upregulating the expression of IFN-γ, perforin and granzyme-B in an NF-κB and MAPK induced T-bet dependent manner in VL