Glucocorticoids remain a cornerstone of therapeutic regimes for autoimmune and chronic inflammatory diseases — for example, in different forms of crescentic glomerulonephritis — because of their rapid antiinflammatory effects, low cost, and wide availability. Despite their routine use for decades, the underlying cellular mechanisms by which steroids exert their therapeutic effects need to be fully elucidated. Here, we demonstrate that high-dose steroid treatment rapidly reduced the number of proinflammatory CXCR3+CD4+ T cells in the kidney by combining high-dimensional single-cell and morphological analyses of kidney biopsies from patients with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody–associated (ANCA-associated) crescentic glomerulonephritis. Using an experimental model of crescentic glomerulonephritis, we show that the steroid-induced decrease in renal CD4+ T cells is a consequence of reduced T cell recruitment, which is associated with an ameliorated disease course. Mechanistic in vivo and in vitro studies revealed that steroids act directly on renal tissue cells, such as tubular epithelial cells, but not on T cells, which resulted in an abolished renal expression of CXCL9 and CXCL10 as well as in the prevention of CXCR3+CD4+ T cell recruitment to the inflamed kidneys. Thus, we identified the CXCL9/CXCL10-CXCR3 axis as a previously unrecognized cellular and molecular target of glucocorticoids providing protection from immune-mediated pathology.
Jan-Hendrik Riedel, Lennart Robben, Hans-Joachim Paust, Yu Zhao, Nariaki Asada, Ning Song, Anett Peters, Anna Kaffke, Alina Borchers, Gisa Tiegs, Larissa Seifert, Nicola M. Tomas, Elion Hoxha, Ulrich O. Wenzel, Tobias B. Huber, Thorsten Wiech, Jan-Eric Turner, Christian F. Krebs, Ulf Panzer
Usage data is cumulative from January 2024 through January 2025.
Usage | JCI | PMC |
---|---|---|
Text version | 741 | 340 |
101 | 90 | |
Figure | 180 | 18 |
Supplemental data | 39 | 13 |
Citation downloads | 39 | 0 |
Totals | 1,100 | 461 |
Total Views | 1,561 |
Usage information is collected from two different sources: this site (JCI) and Pubmed Central (PMC). JCI information (compiled daily) shows human readership based on methods we employ to screen out robotic usage. PMC information (aggregated monthly) is also similarly screened of robotic usage.
Various methods are used to distinguish robotic usage. For example, Google automatically scans articles to add to its search index and identifies itself as robotic; other services might not clearly identify themselves as robotic, or they are new or unknown as robotic. Because this activity can be misinterpreted as human readership, data may be re-processed periodically to reflect an improved understanding of robotic activity. Because of these factors, readers should consider usage information illustrative but subject to change.