Receptor Mincle promotes skin allergies and is capable of recognizing cholesterol sulfate

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 2017. Vol. 114. No. 13. P. E2758–E2765.

Maltseva D., Tonevitsky A.

Sterile (noninfected) inflammation underlies the pathogenesis of many widespread diseases, such as allergies and autoimmune diseases. The evolutionarily conserved innate immune system is considered to play a key role in tissue injury recognition and the subsequent development of sterile inflammation; however, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not yet completely under- stood. Here, we show that cholesterol sulfate, a molecule present in relatively high concentrations in the epithelial layer of barrier tis- sues, is selectively recognized by Mincle (Clec4e), a C-type lectin re- ceptor of the innate immune system that is strongly up-regulated in response to skin damage. Mincle activation by cholesterol sulfate causes the secretion of a range of proinflammatory mediators, and s.c. injection of cholesterol sulfate results in a Mincle-mediated in- duction of a severe local inflammatory response. In addition, our study reveals a role of Mincle as a driving component in the path- ogenesis of allergic skin inflammation. In a well-established model of allergic contact dermatitis, the absence of Mincle leads to a sig- nificant suppression of the magnitude of the skin inflammatory re- sponse as assessed by changes in ear thickness, myeloid cell infiltration, and cytokine and chemokine secretion. Taken together, our results provide a deeper understanding of the fundamental mechanisms underlying sterile inflammation.

Keywords: allergy, Innate immunity, Mincle, Sterile inflammation, cholesterol, Врожденный иммунитет, Стерильное воспаление, Аллергия, Холестерин