Transcript-selective translational control of Th17 cell development and function

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Project Summary Differentiation of naïve CD4+ T helper (TH) cells into effector or regulatory subsets determines whether an immune response is protective, ineffective or pathogenic. Through a standing collaboration with Dr. Malcolm Whitman, we have shown that the febrifugine family of plant natural products—including the synthetic derivative halofuginone (HF)—potently and selectively blocks human and mouse Th17 cell differentiation by activating a conserved stress response pathway, called the amino acid response (AAR). We further showed that HF activates the AAR by binding to the catalytic domain of the mammalian prolyl-tRNA synthetase, EPRS, and inhibiting prolyl-tRNA aminoacylation (i.e., charging). Uncharged tRNAs accumulate in cells during periods of amino acid restriction, and signal sequential translational and transcriptional responses via the ribosome- associated protein kinase, Gcn2, to reduce amino acid demand, increase amino acid supply and facilitate a return to homeostasis. Although HF-mediated EPRS inhibition induces rapid accumulation of uncharged prolyl- tRNAs and Gcn2 activation, we have shown that HF-mediated EPRS inhibition acts independent of known amino acid sensing pathways, including Gcn2, to repress both IL-6-driven Th17 cell differentiation and IL-23- induced ‘pathogenic’ Th17 cell function by selectively repressing Stat3 protein synthesis (i.e., translation). This proposal interrogates two pathways that we hypothesize underlie HF/EPRS-mediated Stat3 translational silencing. First, EPRS (the cellular receptor for HF) has an auxiliary, or ‘moonlighting’, function as the RNA- binding sub-unit of a transcript-selective translational regulatory complex, called GAIT (gamma interferon- activated inhibitor of translation). Assembled GAIT complexes bind and repress translation of select sets of inflammation-associated transcripts containing structurally conserved stem-loop motifs in their 3’ untranslated regions (UTRs), but has yet to be formally evaluated in TH cells. Second, we have shown that both HF- mediated AAR activation (Gcn2-dependent) and HF-dependent anti-inflammatory reprogramming (Gcn2- independent) in stromal cells requires another ribosome-associated protein, Gcn1. Although Gcn1 is known only for enhancing Gcn2-binding to uncharged tRNAs, our data suggest that Gcn1 can be functionally uncoupled from Gcn2, and may serve as a branch point from the canonical AAR pathway in cells responding to amino acid stress. To elucidate the contribution of these pathways to cellular responses to amino acid deprivation, and with an eye towards engineering new drug-like small molecules that retain Stat3 translational silencing activity without inhibiting an essential enzyme (EPRS), we will: (i) employ EPRS immunoprecipitation experiments to assess HF-driven GAIT complex assembly and Stat3 mRNA-binding in developing Th17 cells; and (ii) use inducible RNAi coupled with Ribo-tag mice to determine if HF/EPRS-mediated Stat3 translational repression requires Gcn1.Together, these studies will reveal novel insights into the translational regulation of TH cell differentiation, and inform new, more selective approaches to treat Th17-driven immune pathologies.