ID: 73

The cytoplasmic protein Stimulator of Interferon Genes (STING) plays an essential role in sensing cytoplasmic DNA of intracellular pathogens and initiating IFN type I responses in myeloid cells. It can also directly bind cyclic dinucleotides produced by intracellular bacteria or by the DNA-binding cyclic GMP-AMP (cGAMP) synthase. To date, the signaling mechanisms involving STING activation has been studied in macrophages and dendritic cells. Taking into consideration the fact that STING is highly expressed in the thymus and spleen, we decided to investigate its functional role in T cells. We revealed that STING can be activated in T cells by DMXAA (5,6-dimethylxanthenone-4-acetic acid), which binds to the same site in murine STING as cGAMP and triggers phosphorylation of TBK1 and IRF3 resulting in IFNβ production and increased expression of interferon stimulated genes. In contrast to T lymphocytes obtained from C57B6 WT mice, STING−/− T cells displayed no phosphorylation of TBK1/IRF3, and produced no detectable IFNβ upon stimulation. DMXAA treatment also resulted in IFNgamma secretion by WT cells, while DMXAA-treated knockouts produced only a small amount of IFNgamma comparable to unstimulated WT T cells. Both CD4+ and CD8+ subsets of WT T cells responded to DMXAA with phosphorylation of TBK1/IRF3 and IFNβ production, but only CD4+ cells produced IFNgamma. By performing RNA sequencing, numerous differences in gene expression (including interferon stimulated genes) between WT and STING−/− T cells before and after DMXAA stimulation were identified. The work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation (grant no. 115-15-00100 ).