PPARɣ drives IL-33-dependent ILC2 pro-tumoral functions.

Ercolano G., Gomez-Cadena A., Dumauthioz N., Vanoni G., Kreutzfeldt M., Wyss T., Michalik L., Loyon R., Ianaro A., Ho P-C., Borg C., Kopf M., Merkler D., Krebs P., Romero P., Trabanelli S., Jandus C.

Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) play a critical role in protection against helminths and in diverse inflammatory diseases by responding to soluble factors such as the alarmin IL-33, that is often overexpressed in cancer. Nonetheless, regulatory factors that dictate ILC2 functions remain poorly studied. Here, we show that peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) is selectively expressed in ILC2s in humans and in mice, acting as a central functional regulator. Pharmacologic inhibition or genetic deletion of PPARγ in ILC2s significantly impair IL-33-induced Type-2 cytokine production and mitochondrial fitness. Further, PPARγ blockade in ILC2s disrupts their pro-tumoral effect induced by IL-33-secreting cancer cells. Lastly, genetic ablation of PPARγ in ILC2s significantly suppresses tumor growth in vivo. Our findings highlight a crucial role for PPARγ in supporting the IL-33 dependent pro-tumorigenic role of ILC2s and suggest that PPARγ can be considered as a druggable pathway in ILC2s to inhibit their effector functions. Hence, PPARγ targeting might be exploited in cancer immunotherapy and in other ILC2-driven mediated disorders, such as asthma and allergy.

DOI

10.1038/s41467-021-22764-2

Type

Journal article

Publication Date

2021-05-05T00:00:00+00:00

Volume

12

Keywords

Animals, Asthma, Cytokines, Gene Knockdown Techniques, Humans, Hypersensitivity, Immunity, Innate, Immunotherapy, Interleukin-33, Lymphocytes, Mice, Mice, Inbred C57BL, Mitochondria, Neoplasms, PPAR gamma

Permalink More information Close