Acquired deficiency of A20 results in rapid apoptosis, systemic inflammation, and abnormal hematopoietic stem cell function

PLoS One. 2014 Jan 31;9(1):e87425. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0087425. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

A20 is a negative regulator of NF-κB, and mutational loss of A20 expression is involved in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases and B-cell lymphomas. To clarify the role of A20 in adult hematopoiesis, we generated conditional A20 knockout mice (A20(flox/flox) ) and crossed them with Mx-1Cre (MxCre (+)) and ERT2Cre (ERT2Cre (+)) transgenic mice in which Cre is inducibly activated by endogenous interferon and exogenous tamoxifen, respectively. A20(flox/flox) MxCre (+) (A20Mx) mice spontaneously exhibited myeloid proliferation, B cell apoptosis, and anemia with overproduction of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Bone marrow transplantation demonstrated that these changes were caused by hematopoietic cells. NF-κB was constitutively activated in A20Mx hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), which caused enhanced cell cycle entry and impaired repopulating ability. Tamoxifen stimulation of A20(flox/flox) ERT2Cre (+) (A20ERT2) mice induced fulminant apoptosis and subsequent myeloproliferation, lymphocytopenia, and progressive anemia with excessive production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, as observed in A20Mx mice. These results demonstrate that A20 plays essential roles in the homeostasis of adult hematopoiesis by preventing apoptosis and inflammation. Our findings provide insights into the mechanism underlying A20 dysfunction and human diseases in which A20 expression is impaired.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Apoptosis / physiology*
  • Cell Proliferation*
  • Cysteine Endopeptidases
  • Cytokines / metabolism
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / genetics
  • DNA-Binding Proteins / metabolism*
  • Hematopoiesis / physiology*
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cells / cytology
  • Hematopoietic Stem Cells / metabolism*
  • Humans
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / genetics
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / metabolism*
  • Mice
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Myeloid Cells / cytology
  • Myeloid Cells / metabolism*
  • NF-kappa B / metabolism
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha-Induced Protein 3
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / genetics
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / metabolism*

Substances

  • Cytokines
  • DNA-Binding Proteins
  • Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins
  • NF-kappa B
  • Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha-Induced Protein 3
  • Cysteine Endopeptidases
  • Tnfaip3 protein, mouse

Grants and funding

The authors have no support or funding to report.