A Commitment to Lineage

Abstract SCI-22

The transcription factor T-bet, isolated in our laboratory a decade ago, is a master regulator of Type 1 immunity in cells of both the adaptive and innate immune system. In adaptive immunity, T-bet instigates genetic programs in T helper 1 (Th1) cells and is required for production of the hallmark Th1 cytokine IFNg. It simultaneously represses the differentiation of T helper 2 cells and the profibrotic cytokines IL-13 and TGFb. We have recently determined that T-bet is also a repressor of the Th17 genetic program and have established the molecular mechanisms that underpin that function. T-bet also controls the optimal differentiation and function of the cytolytic CD8 cell, and is required for the development of the natural killer T cell. T-bet deficient animals are largely protected from autoimmune/inflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis, systemic lupus, type 1 diabetes and inflammatory arthritis, but are susceptible to type 2 driven diseases such as asthma and scleroderma. An exception to this overall rule is our recent discovery that in the absence of an adaptive immune system, the majority of mice lacking T-bet develop a spontaneous ulcerative colitis that progresses to colonic dysplasia and rectal adenocarcinoma. This colitis and inflammation associated colorectal cancer are MyD88 independent, driven by colitogenic flora and ameliorated by treatment with TNF blockade, antibiotics, and transfer of T regulatory cells. This phenotype maps to the T-bet deficient dendritic cell that drives this pro-inflammatory program; selective over-expression of T-bet in DCs was sufficient to reduce colonic inflammation and prevent the progression to neoplasia. The molecular pathogenesis of TRUC colitis and colitis-associated colorectal (caCRC) shares several key features with human caCRC. This model of colitis and colitis-associated colorectal cancer provides opportunities to further understand host-microbial relationships in inflammation and neoplasia and test preventative and therapeutic strategies pre-clinically. The function and mechanism of action of T-bet in the pathogenesis of immune system driven diseases will be discussed.