COP9 plays a role in plant innate immunity. The role of COP9 in mammalian innate immune responses is unknown. Here, we show that the COP9 signalosome subunit 5 (CSN5) is required for activation of proinflammatory kinases p38 and Erk and for down-regulation of the expression of genes regulated by nuclear factor E2-related factor 2. Mice with myeloid-specific CSN5 deficiency have lower mortality in polymicrobial sepsis. CSN5 is required for both Toll-like receptor (TLR) and reactive oxygen species-mediated deneddylation of Cul3, which is essential for Cul3/Keap1-mediated degradation of nuclear factor E2-related factor 2. On the basis of our results COP9 subunit CSN5 is considered to be an essential component of mammalian innate immunity.
IntroductionPlants, unlike mammals, lack a somatic adaptive immune system. Instead, they rely on innate immunity, and COP9 plays a role in plant innate immune responses. 1,2 The role of COP9 in mammalian innate immune responses is unknown. The COP9 signalosome (CSN) is an evolutionarily conserved multisubunit complex (CSN1-CSN8) that regulates the activity of cullin-RING ubiquitin ligases by removing the ubiquitin-like peptide NEDD8. [3][4][5] Among the 8 subunits of the CSN, CSN5 is the most probable component to play a critical role in holo-CSN complex-dependent deneddylase activity. 6 CSN5 has been implicated in the functions of cytokine macrophage migration inhibitor factor 7 and leukocyte functional antigen 1. 8 Little is known about the inflammatory signaling pathways of TLRs that are regulated by CSN5 in macrophages, a cell type central to the initiation of innate immune responses.TLRs have been shown to play a crucial role in host defense against pathogenic microbes in innate immunity. TLR ligand binding leads to activation of several MAPK pathways that modulate inflammatory responses. The nuclear factor E2-related factor 2 (NRF2) is a master transcriptional activator of genes encoding numerous cytoprotective enzymes that are induced in response to TLR ligand stimuli 9-13 and endogenously derived oxidative/electrophilic agents such as reactive oxygen species (ROS). 14 However, how NRF2 cross talk with proinflammatory pathways occurs on TLR activation has not been established.In this study, we sought to examine the function of CSN5 in innate immune responses by conditional ablation of CSN5 gene expression, specifically in myeloid cells. Knockout (KO) of CSN5 in macrophages significantly attenuates the induction of phosphorylated p38 and Erk on TLR ligand stimulation. The attenuation is specific for MAPK p38 and Erk without affecting activation of NF-B. Depletion of CSN5 in macrophages leads to a marked increase in the regulation of a group of antioxidation and anti-inflammatory genes, including HO-1, which plays a critical role in anti-inflammation. [15][16][17] The up-regulation of HO-1 is correlated with the reduction of Cul3 and enhancement of neddylated Cul3 in macrophages and the accumulation of NRF2. KO of CSN5 also enhanced ROS-mediated neddylation of Cul3. These fi...