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Background: Overproduction of cAMP-responsive element modulator α (CREMα) in total T cells from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) can inhibit IL-2 and increase IL-17A. These ultimately promote progression of SLE. This study aims to investigate the expression of CREMα in SLE CD4+ T cells and find out the mechanisms for the regulation of CREMα in SLE CD4+ T cells. Results: CREMα mRNA was overexpressed in CD4+ T cells from SLE patients. The levels of histone H3 lysine 9 trimethylation (H3K9me3) and suppressor of variation 3–9 homolog 1 (SUV39H1) at the CREMα promoter of SLE CD4+ T cells were markedly decreased. Down-regulating SUV39H1 in normal CD4+ T cells elevated the levels of CREMα, IL-17A, and histone H3 lysine 4 trimethylation (H3K4me3) in the CREMα promoter region, and lowered IL-2, H3K9me3, DNA methylation, and DNA methyltransferase 3a (DNMT3a) enrichments within the CREMα promoter, while no sharp change in SET domain containing 1 (Set1) at the CREMα promoter. Up-regulating SUV39H1 in SLE CD4+ T cells had the opposite effects. The DNA methylation and DNMT3a levels were obviously reduced, and H3K4me3 enrichment was greatly increased at the CREMα promoter of CD4+ T cells from SLE patients. The Set1 binding in the CREMα promoter region upgraded significantly, and knocking down Set1 in SLE CD4+ T cells alleviated the H3K4me3 enrichment within this region, suppressed CREMα and IL-17A productions, and promoted the levels of IL-2, CREMα promoter DNA methylation, and DNMT3a. But there were no obviously alterations in H3K9me3 and SUV39H1 amounts in the region after transfection. Conclusions: Decreased SUV39H1 in the CREMα promoter region of CD4+ T cells from SLE patients contributes to under-expression of H3K9me3 at this region. In the meantime, the Set1 binding at the CREMα promoter of SLE CD4+ T cells is up-regulated. As a result, DNMT3a and DNA methylation levels alleviate, and H3K4me3 binding increases. All these lead to overproduction of CREMα. Thus, the secretion of IL-2 down-regulates and the concentration of IL-17A up-regulates, ultimately promoting SLE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with multiple genetic backgrounds, whose etiology and pathogenesis are still unclear. Complex T‐cell immune imbalance has been demonstrated to play an important role in pathogenesis of psoriasis. This study reported that microRNA‐126 (miR‐126) expression was decreased in CD4+ T cells of both psoriasis patients and psoriasis‐like mouse models and its expression was negatively correlated with the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score of psoriasis patients. Conditional Mir126 knockout in mouse CD4+ T cells can obviously aggravate the psoriasis‐like dermatitis and promote T‐helper (Th)1 and Th17 cells' infiltration in spleen of imiquimod (IMQ)‐induced psoriasis‐like mouse model. In addition, the mRNA expression of Il17a and Il17f were significantly increased in mouse naïve CD4+ T cells with Mir126 knockout after stimulating with CD3 and CD28. Compared with naïve CD4+ T cells, the expression of Mir126 was decreased in Th17 cells, and Mir126 knockout notably promoted the differentiation of naïve CD4+ T cells to Th17 cells as well as the mRNA expression of Il17a, Il17f, Rorc, and Il23R. Our results revealed that decreased miR‐126 in psoriatic CD4+ T cells might accelerate the formation of skin lesions through promoting the differentiation of Th17 cells, thus suggesting a potential intervention target for psoriasis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased BAFF expression in B-cells of patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is associated with B-cell hyperstimulation and T-cell hyperactivity, but the underlying mechanisms are still unclear. This study aimed to uncover the mechanisms that regulate the BAFF expression in SLE B-cells. The results demonstrated that the expression of miR-152-3p was significantly increased in SLE B-cells compared with normal controls. This study confirmed that Kruppel-like factor 5 (KLF5) was a direct target of miR-152-3p, and it could bind to the promoter region of BAFF and inhibit its expression in B-cells. The upregulation of miRNA-152-3p expression decreased the KLF5 expression and increased the BAFF expression in SLE B-cells. Knockdown of miR-152-3p expression inhibited the self-reactivity of SLE B-cells, thereby reducing the autoantibody production. The increased miR-152-3p expression in SLE B-cells led to an increase in BAFF expression by inhibiting KLF5 expression. These factors caused B-cell self-reactivity and autoantibody production, allowing participation in the disease process of SLE. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Age-related variations in genes and microRNAs expression and DNA methylation have been reported respectively; however, their interactions during aging are unclear. We therefore investigated alterations in the transcriptomes, miRNAomes and DNA methylomes in the same CD4+T cells from newborn (NB), middle-aged (MA) and long-lived (LL) individuals to elucidate the molecular changes and their interactions. A total 659 genes showed significantly expression changes across NB, MA and LL individuals, in which we identified four age-related co-expression modules with three hub networks of co-expressed genes and non-coding RNAs. Moreover, we identified 9835 differentially methylated regions (DMRs) including 7015 hypermethylated and 2820 hypomethylated DMRs in the NB compared with the MA, and 12,362 DMRs including 4809 hypermethylated and 7553 hypomethylated DMRs in the MA compared with the LL. The integrated analysis revealed a potential relationship between genes transcription and DNA methylation for many age- or immune-related genes, suggesting that DNA methylation-dependent transcription regulation is involved in development and functions of T cells during aging. Our results reveals age-related transcription and methylation changes and their interactions in human T cells from the cradle to the grave. Longitudinal work is required to establish the relationship between identified age-associated genes/DNA methylation and T cells aging phenotypes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is a prototype autoimmune disease characterized by various immunological abnormalities, including dysregulated activation of T and B lymphocytes, which trigger autoantibody production and immune-complex deposition. E4BP4, also known as NFIL3, has emerged as a major transcription factor that regulates the development and function of immune cells in a number of lineages. E4BP4 has been shown to regulate cytokines expression, and its synthesis is in turn controlled by various cytokines. To date, the roles of E4BP4 in immune dysregulation and autoimmune disorders are unclear. In this study, we demonstrated that E4BP4 expression is increased in CD4+ T cells isolated from patients with active systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), especially in patients treated with glucocorticoid (GC). Increased expression of E4BP4 inhibited the activation and self-reactivity of T cells stimulated by anti-CD3/CD28 antibodies. In contrast, the self-reactivity was enhanced in CD4+ T cells from SLE patients following E4BP4 gene silencing and the production of autoantibody was increased in autologous B cells. We further demonstrated that E4BP4 directly regulated CD40L expression by binding to the promoter region and altering histone acetylation and methylation of the CD40L loci. Taken together, our data provide evidence that E4BP4 can inhibit CD40L expression through epigenetic modifications in the promoter region of CD40L, thus negatively regulating self-reactivity of SLE CD4+ T cells. Furthermore, our data demonstrate that overexpression of E4BP4 initiates a protective mechanism in SLE CD4+ T cells, which may be a promising target in the therapy for SLE. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with multiple genetic backgrounds, whose etiology and pathogenesis are still unclear. Complex T-cell immune imbalance has been demonstrated to play an important role in pathogenesis of psoriasis. This study reported that microRNA-126 (miR-126) expression was decreased in CD4 + T cells of both psoriasis patients and psoriasis-like mouse models and its expression was negatively correlated with the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score of psoriasis patients. Conditional Mir126 knockout in mouse CD4 + T cells can obviously aggravate the psoriasis-like dermatitis and promote T-helper (Th)1 and Th17 cells' infiltration in spleen of imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriasis-like mouse model. In addition, the mRNA expression of Il17a and Il17f were significantly increased in mouse naïve CD4 + T cells with Mir126 knockout after stimulating with CD3 and CD28. Compared with naïve CD4 + T cells, the expression of Mir126 was decreased in Th17 cells, and Mir126 knockout notably promoted the differentiation of naïve CD4 + T cells to Th17 cells as well as the mRNA expression of Il17a, Il17f, Rorc, and Il23R. Our results revealed that decreased miR-126 in psoriatic CD4 + T cells might accelerate the formation of skin lesions through promoting the differentiation of Th17 cells, thus suggesting a potential intervention target for psoriasis., (© 2021 Japanese Dermatological Association.)

A 29-year-old male patient with extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma, a nasal type lymphoma with involvement of skin as the first symptom, was reported. The patient presented with swelling in the left side of the nose and suffered intermittent fever for 1 month. The fester in the oral mucosa and skin under the left nostril and redness, and the swelling on the orbit of the left eye lasted for 1 week. Physical examination showed that the left side of nose was swelling, and the skin below the left nostril was anabrotic and crusted. There were different ulcers in his jaws and buccal mucosa. Bilateral eyelid was redness and swelling, especially in the left side. Binocular conjunctival was congestive. The diagnosis of extranodal NK/T-cell lymphoma (nasal type) was confirmed by biopsy and immunohistochemistry.

Age-related variations in genes and microRNAs expression and DNA methylation have been reported respectively; however, their interactions during aging are unclear. We therefore investigated alterations in the transcriptomes, miRNAomes and DNA methylomes in the same CD4 + T cells from newborn (NB), middle-aged (MA) and long-lived (LL) individuals to elucidate the molecular changes and their interactions. A total 659 genes showed significantly expression changes across NB, MA and LL individuals, in which we identified four age-related co-expression modules with three hub networks of co-expressed genes and non-coding RNAs. Moreover, we identified 9835 differentially methylated regions (DMRs) including 7015 hypermethylated and 2820 hypomethylated DMRs in the NB compared with the MA, and 12,362 DMRs including 4809 hypermethylated and 7553 hypomethylated DMRs in the MA compared with the LL. The integrated analysis revealed a potential relationship between genes transcription and DNA methylation for many age- or immune-related genes, suggesting that DNA methylation-dependent transcription regulation is involved in development and functions of T cells during aging. Our results reveals age-related transcription and methylation changes and their interactions in human T cells from the cradle to the grave. Longitudinal work is required to establish the relationship between identified age-associated genes/DNA methylation and T cells aging phenotypes.

Objective: To investigate the effect of total glucosides of peony (TGP) on expression and DNA methylation status of ITGAL gene (CD11a) in CD4(+) T cells from patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)., Methods: CD4(+) T cells were isolated by positive selection using CD4 beads. CD4(+) T cells were treated by TGP at 0, 62.5, 312.5 and 1562.5 mg/L for 48 h. The MTT method was used to assess cell viability; mRNA expression level was measured by realtime-PCR; protein level of CD11a was measured by flow cytometric analysis; DNA methylation status was assayed by bisulfite sequencing., Results: No significant change in cell viability was found in CD4(+) T cells among the different concentration groups (P>0.05). Compared with control, the mRNA and protein levels of ITGAL were down-regulated significantly in SLE CD4(+) T cells treated with TGP (1562.5 mg/L) (P< 0.01). Furthermore, the extent of DNA methylation of ITGAL promoter was increased in TGP (1562.5 mg/L) treated CD4(+) T cells compared with control group (P<0.01)., Conclusion: TGP can repress CD11a gene expression through enhancing DNA methylation of ITGAL promoter in CD4(+) T cells from patients with SLE. This observation represents a preliminary step in understanding the mechanism of TGP in SLE therapy.