a, Massively enlarged mesenteric lymph node (MLN) in a mouse with DLBCL (mouse ID: 237-2)
a, Massively enlarged mesenteric lymph node (MLN) in a mouse with DLBCL (mouse ID: 237-2). with LPS (a bacterial mimic) or polyI:C (a viral mimic), M-TRAF3?/? mice exhibited an altered profile of cytokine production. M-TRAF3?/? mice immunized with T cell-independent (TI) and -dependent (TD) antigens displayed elevated TI IgG3 as well as TD IgG2b responses. Interestingly, 15C22 month old M-TRAF3?/? mice spontaneously developed chronic inflammation or tumors, often affecting multiple organs. Taken together, our findings indicate that TRAF3 expressed in myeloid cells regulates immune responses in myeloid cells and acts to inhibit inflammation and tumor development in mice. Introduction Tumor necrosis factor receptor-associated factor 3 (TRAF3), a member of the TRAF family of cytoplasmic adaptor proteins, is employed in signaling by a variety of immune receptors, including the tumor necrosis factor receptor (TNF-R) superfamily, Chlormezanone (Trancopal) Toll-like receptors (TLRs), NOD-like receptors (NLRs), and RIG-I-like receptors (RLRs) (1, 2). TRAF3 binds directly to almost all members of the TNF-R superfamily that do not contain death domains, including CD40, BAFF-R, TACI, BCMA, LT-R, CD27, CD30, RANK, HVEM, EDAR, XEDAR, 4-1BB (CD137), OX-40 (CD134), and GITR (TNFRSF18). TRAF3 is also indirectly recruited to the signaling complexes of pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) of the innate immune system through interactions Chlormezanone (Trancopal) Chlormezanone (Trancopal) with additional adaptor proteins, including MyD88 and TRIF for TLR signaling, RIP2 for NLR signaling, and MAVS for RLR signaling (3C5). The shared usage of TRAF3 by such a variety of immune receptors is indicative of its broad functional roles in the immune system. Mice made genetically deficient in TRAF3 (TRAF3?/?) die within 10 days of birth with severe progressive runting, illustrating crucial developmental functions of TRAF3 (6). To circumvent experimental limitations imposed by the early mortality of TRAF3?/? mice and to explore the functions of TRAF3 in various cell types of adult mice, we recently employed a conditional gene targeting strategy to generate conditional TRAF3-deficient Chlormezanone (Trancopal) (TRAF3flox/flox) mice. This makes it possible to delete the gene in specific cell types or tissues (7). Characterization of conditional TRAF3-deficient mouse models revealed that TRAF3 is critically involved in regulating multiple receptor signaling pathways in different immune cell types. We previously reported that specific ablation of TRAF3 in B lymphocytes results in marked peripheral B cell hyperplasia, due to remarkably prolonged survival of mature B cells independent of the B cell survival factor BAFF, leading to the development of splenic marginal zone lymphomas (MZL) or B1 lymphomas by 18 months of age (7, 8). These findings indicated that a major homeostatic function of TRAF3 in peripheral B cells is the promotion of spontaneous apoptosis, a conclusion subsequently corroborated by Gardam and colleagues (9). In contrast, specific deletion Chlormezanone (Trancopal) of TRAF3 from the T cell lineage leads to defective IgG1 responses to a T cell-dependent (TD) antigen (Ag) and impaired T cell-mediated immunity to infection with due to compromised T cell receptor (TCR)/CD28 signaling in both CD4 and CD8 T cells (10). Additionally, recent evidence from other groups demonstrated that TRAF3 regulates the effector function of Treg cells (11) and that Rabbit polyclonal to Osteocalcin TRAF3 is required for the development of iNKT cells (12). Thus, TRAF3 plays distinct and pivotal roles in regulating the development and function of different subsets of immune cells. Myeloid cells, including granulocytes, monocytes, macrophages and dendritic cells (DCs), are crucial determinants of innate immunity and inflammation, and also play essential roles in antigen presentation as well as the effector phase of adaptive immunity. These cells constitutively or inducibly express a number of receptors of the TNF-R, TLR, NLR, and RLR families, whose signals are regulated by TRAF3 (1, 2). Although evidence indicates that TRAF3 is required for TLR-induced type I interferon (IFN) production (13, 14) and for CD40-induced IL-12 production in macrophages (15), the functions of TRAF3.