Summary
Immunological control of mucosal barrier development and maintenance is a critical process, as imbalances in
immune sentinel activity can lead to skin, lung and gut inflammatory diseases. Central in the mucosal tissue
homeostasis are type 3 cytokine producing lymphocytes. Cytokines, cytokines receptors and master
transcriptions involved in tissue development and barrier fortification have been identified based on analyses of
loss of function models in human and mice. However, non-inflammatory factors that orchestrate the type 3
responses in tissues to assure proper immune reactions and prevent aberrant inflammation have not been well
characterized.
We discovered that oxysterols, a major class of cholesterol metabolites with established immunomodulatory
activities, are the primary positional cues for the stereotypical type 3 lymphocytes in the skin called T¿d17 cells.
Ebi2 (encoded by Gpr183) is the G protein coupled receptor (GPCR) that senses specific types of oxysterols,
and is expressed on all type 3 cytokine producing lymphocytes. Increased dietary cholesterol enhances Tgd17
activity at the skin interface via augmented oxysterol production and sensing. However, how tissue resident cells
contribute to the anatomical framework that generate the final positional cues for dermal IL-17 secreting innate
T lymphocytes is not known. Moreover, whether oxysterols are involved in the development of skin-tropic Tgd17
and other type 3 cytokine producing lymphocytes is not known.
In this project we will test the hypothesis that Tgd17 cells maintain barrier tissue homeostasis by sensing cues
that reflect nutritional states and inputs from the peripheral nerve system. Metabolic changes in the epithelial-
neuronal niche in the skin control optimal microanatomical Tgd17 positioning and function via GPR183. This
integrated sensory mechanism for cholesterol metabolism and neuronal inputs is imprinted early in T¿d17
thymocyte maturation through interactions with a novel subset of thymic epithelial cells programmed to produce
oxysterols. The conceptual basis of this project is innovative as there are no precedents for the oxysterol-
regulated mucosal tissue hub integrating epithelial-neuronal-immune communications critical for barrier tissue
fitness.
