长链非编码 RNA NCAL1 通过 Gab2-PI3K-AKT 通路增强自然杀伤细胞的细胞毒性。
LncRNA NCAL1 potentiates natural killer cell cytotoxicity through the Gab2-PI3K-AKT pathway.
机构信息
Department of Cancer Center, First Hospital, Jilin University, Changchun, China.
Department of Translational Medicine, First Hospital, Jilin University, Changchun, China.
出版信息
Front Immunol. 2022 Sep 28;13:970195. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.970195. eCollection 2022.
Natural killer (NK) cells perform immune surveillance functions in tumors. The antitumor effects of NK cells are closely related to tumor occurrence and development. However, the molecular factors that determine NK cell antitumor activity remain to be characterized. In the present study, we identified a novel long noncoding RNA (lncRNA), NK cell activity-associated lncRNA 1 (NCAL1), and investigated its function in NK cells. NCAL1 was primarily located in NK cell nuclei, where it functioned by activating Gab2, a scaffold protein with an essential role in immune cells. Gab2 positively regulated the killing activity of NK cells. Mechanistically, NCAL1 upregulated Gab2 epigenetically by binding to the promoter, which decreased methylation, recruited the transcription factor Sp1, and increased H3K4me3 and H3K27ac levels in the Gab2 promoter. Furthermore, NCAL1 enhanced the cytotoxicity of NK cells toward tumor cells through the Gab2-PI3K-AKT pathway. Thus, NCAL1 potentiates NK cell cytotoxicity and is a promising therapeutic target to improve NK cell therapy.
自然杀伤 (NK) 细胞在肿瘤中发挥免疫监视功能。NK 细胞的抗肿瘤作用与肿瘤的发生发展密切相关。然而,决定 NK 细胞抗肿瘤活性的分子因素仍有待阐明。在本研究中,我们鉴定了一种新型长非编码 RNA (lncRNA),NK 细胞活性相关 lncRNA 1 (NCAL1),并研究了其在 NK 细胞中的功能。NCAL1 主要位于 NK 细胞核内,通过激活 Gab2 发挥作用,Gab2 是一种在免疫细胞中具有重要作用的支架蛋白。Gab2 正向调节 NK 细胞的杀伤活性。从机制上讲,NCAL1 通过结合启动子,增加 H3K4me3 和 H3K27ac 水平,从而在 Gab2 启动子上增加组蛋白 3 赖氨酸 4 三甲基化和组蛋白 3 赖氨酸 27 乙酰化,从而通过表观遗传方式上调 Gab2。此外,NCAL1 通过 Gab2-PI3K-AKT 通路增强 NK 细胞对肿瘤细胞的细胞毒性。因此,NCAL1 增强了 NK 细胞的细胞毒性,是改善 NK 细胞治疗的有前途的治疗靶点。