Th17 Immunity in the Colon Is Controlled by Two Novel Subsets of Colon-Specific Mononuclear Phagocytes

• Published in: Frontiers in immunology 2021-04, Vol.12, p.661290
• Main Authors: Huang, Hsin-I, Jewell, Mark L, Youssef, Nourhan, Huang, Min-Nung, Hauser, Elizabeth R, Fee, Brian E, Rudemiller, Nathan P, Privratsky, Jamie R, Zhang, Junyi J, Reyes, Estefany Y, Wang, Donghai, Taylor, Gregory A, Gunn, Michael D, Ko, Dennis C, Cook, Donald N, Chandramohan, Vidyalakshmi, Crowley, Steven D, Hammer, Gianna Elena
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Antigen-Presenting Cells - immunology; Antigen-Presenting Cells - metabolism; CD24 Antigen - immunology; CD24 Antigen - metabolism; colon; Colon - cytology; Colon - immunology; Colon - metabolism; Cytokines - genetics; Cytokines - immunology; Cytokines - metabolism; dendritic cells; Dendritic Cells - immunology; Dendritic Cells - metabolism; Gene Expression - immunology; Immunology; Interferon Regulatory Factors - immunology; Interferon Regulatory Factors - metabolism; intestine; Intestine, Small - immunology; Lipopolysaccharide Receptors - immunology; Lipopolysaccharide Receptors - metabolism; macrophages; Macrophages - immunology; Macrophages - metabolism; Mice; Mice, 129 Strain; Mice, Knockout; Mice, Transgenic; Phagocytes - immunology; Phagocytes - metabolism; Receptor, Anaphylatoxin C5a - immunology; Receptor, Anaphylatoxin C5a - metabolism; small intestine; Th17 Cells - immunology; Th17 Cells - metabolism; Th17 immunity
• ISSN: 1664-3224; 1664-3224
• DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.661290

Intestinal immunity is coordinated by specialized mononuclear phagocyte populations, constituted by a diversity of cell subsets. Although the cell subsets constituting the mononuclear phagocyte network are thought to be similar in both small and large intestine, these organs have distinct anatomy, microbial composition, and immunological demands. Whether these distinctions demand organ-specific mononuclear phagocyte populations with dedicated organ-specific roles in immunity are unknown. Here we implement a new strategy to subset murine intestinal mononuclear phagocytes and identify two novel subsets which are colon-specific: a macrophage subset and a Th17-inducing dendritic cell (DC) subset. Colon-specific DCs and macrophages co-expressed CD24 and CD14, and surprisingly, both were dependent on the transcription factor IRF4. Novel IRF4-dependent CD14 CD24 macrophages were markedly distinct from conventional macrophages and failed to express classical markers including CX3CR1, CD64 and CD88, and surprisingly expressed little IL-10, which was otherwise robustly expressed by all other intestinal macrophages. We further found that colon-specific CD14 CD24 mononuclear phagocytes were essential for Th17 immunity in the colon, and provide definitive evidence that colon and small intestine have distinct antigen presenting cell requirements for Th17 immunity. Our findings reveal unappreciated organ-specific diversity of intestine-resident mononuclear phagocytes and organ-specific requirements for Th17 immunity.