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Staphylococcus aureus exacerbates dermal IL-33/ILC2 axis activation through evoking RIPK3/MLKL-mediated necroptosis of dry skin
Chia-Hui Luo, Alan Chuan-Ying Lai, Chun-Chou Tsai, Wei-Yu Chen, Yu-Shan Chang, Ethan Ja-Chen Chung, Ya-Jen Chang
Chia-Hui Luo, Alan Chuan-Ying Lai, Chun-Chou Tsai, Wei-Yu Chen, Yu-Shan Chang, Ethan Ja-Chen Chung, Ya-Jen Chang
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Research Article Immunology Inflammation

Staphylococcus aureus exacerbates dermal IL-33/ILC2 axis activation through evoking RIPK3/MLKL-mediated necroptosis of dry skin

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Abstract

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a persistent skin disease typified by symptoms of dry skin and recurrent eczema. Patients with AD are at heightened risk for Staphylococcus aureus infection. Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) are mainly activated by epithelial cell–derived cytokines IL-33 and involved in the pathogenesis of AD. However, little is known about the effect of skin delipidization on the epithelial cell–derived cytokines and dermal ILC2s in AD. In our study, we investigated the mechanism by which S. aureus infection modulates and exacerbates the pathogenesis of dry skin, leading to type 2 inflammation in the context of innate immunity. In vivo, we found that S. aureus infection aggravated delipidization-induced dermal IL-33 release and dermal ILC2 accumulation, which exacerbated skin inflammation. We also noticed that Il33fl/fl K14cre mice and Tlr2–/– mice exhibited attenuated skin inflammation. In vitro, treatment with necroptosis inhibitors reduced IL-33 release from S. aureus–infected keratinocytes. Mechanistically, we observed an increase in the necroptosis-associated kinases, MLKL and RIPK3, in S. aureus–infected mice, indicating that IL-33 release was associated with necroptotic cell death responses. Our results reveal that S. aureus infection–elicited keratinocyte necroptosis contributes to IL-33–mediated type 2 inflammation, which exacerbates the pathogenesis of dry skin.

Authors

Chia-Hui Luo, Alan Chuan-Ying Lai, Chun-Chou Tsai, Wei-Yu Chen, Yu-Shan Chang, Ethan Ja-Chen Chung, Ya-Jen Chang

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Figure 7

S. aureus–induced IL-33 release from keratinocytes is dependent on TLR2 signaling.

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S. aureus–induced IL-33 release from keratinocytes is dependent on TLR2...
(A–D) Levels of IL-33 and percentage of LDH released from KERTr cells (A–C) and mouse primary keratinocytes (D) infected with S. aureus (SA) or heat-killed S. aureus (HK), or treated with peptidoglycan from S. aureus (PGN). (E) mRNA level and protein level of IL-33 in KERTr cells infected with S. aureus and treated or not with TLR2 neutralizing antibody. (F–J) Three-week-old WT and Tlr2–/– mice were epicutaneously challenged with S. aureus (5 × 108 CFU) under delipidization treatment for 24 hours. (F) H&E-stained skin sections. Scale bars: 50 μm. E, epidermidis; D, dermal. (G) Measurement of skin thickness. (H) Transepidermal water loss (TEWL) in skin. (I and J) Levels of Il33 (I) and Il13 (J) mRNA in skin. Data are shown as mean ± SEM from 3 independent experiments (n = 3–7 per group). Statistical analysis was performed using 1-way ANOVA (A–E and G–J). *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001.

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