We report here the identification, following expression cloning, of a molecule, STING (STimulator of INterferon Genes) that regulates innate immune signaling processes. STING, comprising 5 putative transmembrane (TM) regions, predominantly resides in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and is able to activate both NF-κB and IRF3 transcription pathways to induce type I IFN and exert a potent anti-viral state following expression. In contrast, loss of STING rendered murine embryonic fibroblasts (STING −/−MEFs) extremely susceptible to negative-stranded virus infection, including vesicular stomatitis virus, VSV. Further, STING ablation abrogated the ability of intracellular B-form DNA, as well as members of the herpes virus family, to induce IFNβ, but did not significantly affect the Toll-like receptor (TLR pathway). Yeast-two hybrid and co-immunprecipitation studies indicated that STING interacts with RIG-I and with Ssr2/TRAPβ, a member of the translocon-associated protein (TRAP) complex required for protein translocation across the ER membrane following translation[1, 2]. RNAi ablation of TRAPβ and translocon adaptor Sec61β was subsequently found to inhibit STING’s ability to stimulate IFNβ. Thus, aside from identifying a novel regulator of innate immune signaling, this data implicates for the first time a potential role for the translocon in innate signaling pathways activated by select viruses as well as intracellular DNA.

The innate immune system is critical for the early detection of invading pathogens and for initiating cellular host defence countermeasures, which include the production of type I interferon (IFN)1–3. However, little is known about how the innate immune system is galvanized to respond to DNA-based microbes. Here we show that STING (stimulator of interferon genes) is critical for the induction of IFN by non-CpG intracellular DNA species produced by various DNA pathogens after infection4. Murine embryonic fibroblasts, as well as antigen presenting cells such as macrophages and dendritic cells (exposed to intracellular B-form DNA, the DNA virus herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) or bacteria Listeria monocytogenes), were found to require STING to initiate effective IFN production. Accordingly, Sting-knockout mice were susceptible to lethal infection after exposure to HSV-1. The importance of STING in facilitating DNA-mediated innate immune responses was further evident because cytotoxic T-cell responses induced by plasmid DNA vaccination were reduced in Sting-deficient animals. In the presence of intracellular DNA, STING relocalized with TANK-binding kinase 1 (TBK1) from the endoplasmic reticulum to perinuclear vesicles containing the exocyst component Sec5 (also known as EXOC2). Collectively, our studies indicate that STING is essential for host defence against DNA pathogens such as HSV-1 and facilitates the adjuvant activity of DNA-based vaccines.

Chromatin is traditionally viewed as a nuclear entity that regulates gene expression and silencing1–3. However, we recently discovered the presence of cytoplasmic chromatin fragments that pinch off from intact nuclei of primary cells during senescence4,5, a form of terminal cell cycle arrest associated with pro-inflammatory responses6. The functional significance of chromatin in the cytoplasm is unclear. Here we show that cytoplasmic chromatin activates the innate immunity cytosolic DNA sensing cGAS-STING pathway, leading to both short-term inflammation to restrain activated oncogene and chronic inflammation that associates with tissue destruction and cancer. The cytoplasmic chromatin-cGAS-STING pathway promotes the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) in primary human cells and in mice. Mice deficient in STING show impaired immuno-surveillance of oncogenic RAS and reduced tissue inflammation upon ionizing radiation. Furthermore, this pathway is activated in cancer cells, and correlates with pro-inflammatory gene expression in human cancers. Overall, our findings indicate that genomic DNA serves as a reservoir to initiate a pro-inflammatory pathway in the cytoplasm in senescence and cancer. Targeting the cytoplasmic chromatin-mediated pathway may hold promise in treating inflammation-related disorders.