Mechanisms Behind Regulatory T Cell Dysfunction

New research from Yale University unravels the mechanism behind regulatory T cell dysfunction in multiple sclerosis. Their study titled An autoimmune transcriptional circuit drives FOXP3+ regulatory T cell dysfunction found that people with multiple sclerosis have elevated expression of a protein called PRDM1-S. This protein induces the expression of a salt-sensing enzyme that affects regulatory T cell function. In combination with previous research from the team that found that high salt levels can trigger inflammation found in multiple sclerosis, this new work shows a connection between the genetic and environmental influences behind autoimmunity.

PRDM1-S is also upregulated in other autoimmune diseases and hints at a common mechanism of regulatory T cell dysfunction between autoimmune diseases.

Citation:

Sumida, T. S., et al. An autoimmune transcriptional circuit drives FOXP3+ regulatory T cell dysfunction. Science translational medicine, 16(762), eadp1720. (2024) https://doi.org/10.1126/scitranslmed.adp1720