Respiratory viral infections can directly lead to kidney damage such as IgA nephropathy (IgAN), partly due to mucosal immune system dysfunction. Although the activated C5a-C5aR1 axis results in increased Th1 and Th17 frequencies but reduced Treg frequencies in Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection, how this axis affects Th cell disorders in RSV-induced IgAN exacerbation remains unknown. Here, we used a mouse model to dissect the activation of C5a-C5aR1 by RSV and the consequences on the regulation of Th1, Th17, and Treg immune responses in IgA nephropathy. RSV fusion protein was clearly deposited not only in the pulmonary interstitium but also in the glomerulus in RSV-IgAN mice, and RSV infection led to more severe pathological changes in the kidneys in IgAN mice. Blocking the C5a-C5aR1 axis resulted in a decrease in the albumin-to-creatinine ratio, and the attenuation of kidney damage in IgAN and RSV-IgAN mice might be partly attributed to the inhibition of Th cell and cytokine dysfunction. Th1, Th17 and Treg immune responses and their corelative cytokines were disrupted by RSV infection and rescued by C5aR1 inhibition. Moreover, we constructed a coculture system of human mesangial cells and CD4+ T cells and found that RSV infection might lead to CD4+ T cell production via human mesangial cells-enhanced CD4+ T cell proliferation, consequently increasing IL-17 levels. These pathological behaviors were augmented by C5a stimulation and decreased by C5aR1 inhibition. Thus, C5aR1 inhibition alters both kidney damage and Th1, Th17, and Treg cell dysfunction in RSV-induced IgAN exacerbation and locally regulates HMC antigen presentation function in the kidney. Taken together, our data offer profound evidence that blocking the C5a-C5aR1 axis might be a potential therapy for RSV-induced IgAN.
Keywords: C5a-C5aR1 axis; CD4+ T cells; IgA nephropathy exacerbation; RSV; human mesangial cells.