Interleukin-37 protects against acinar cell pyroptosis in acute pancreatitis

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Abstract

Acute pancreatitis (AP) is a local and/or systemic inflammatory disease that starts with acinar cell injury and necrosis; it has no effective medical treatment and thus remains a life-threatening condition. Interleukin-37 (IL-37), a natural immunomodulator, has demonstrated an antiinflammatory effect; however, the role of IL-37 in AP remains unknown. The serum IL-37 levels of 39 healthy controls and 94 patients with AP were measured. Cholecystokinin was applied to induce pancreatic acinar cell injury in vitro. Classical experimental AP models, such as caerulein, l-arginine, and taurolithocholic acid 3-sulfate disodium salt, were included in the in vivo study. A transgenic mouse model with the IL-37 gene and administration of recombinant IL-37 were used to further investigate the function of IL-37 in AP. Pancreas-specific gasdermin D–knockout (GSDMD-knockout) mice were used to explore the protective mechanism of IL-37. Our results showed that serum IL-37 levels in humans were negatively correlated with the severity of AP. Furthermore, IL-37–transgenic mice and supplementation with recombinant IL-37 could both protect against AP. Mechanistically, IL-37 was able to suppress pyroptosis of injured acinar cells, and specific depletion of GSDMD in the pancreas counteracted the protective effect of IL-37. Our study demonstrates that IL-37 protects against acinar cell pyroptosis in AP.

Authors

Nan Ma, Chenchen Yuan, Juanjuan Shi, Qingtian Zhu, Yang Liu, Xiaojie Ma, Baiqiang Li, Weijuan Gong, Jing Xue, Guotao Lu, Weiqin Li, Jieshou Li