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Laurence B Peterson

Publications and source records attributed to Laurence B Peterson.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

Ptpn22 and Cd2 Variations Are Associated with Altered Protein Expression and Susceptibility to Type 1 Diabetes in Nonobese Diabetic Mice.

By congenic strain mapping using autoimmune NOD.C57BL/6J congenic mice, we demonstrated previously that the type 1 diabetes (T1D) protection associated with the insulin-dependent diabetes (Idd)10 locus on chromosome 3, originally identified by linkage analysis, was in fact due to three closely linked Idd loci: Idd10, Idd18.1, and Idd18.3. In this study, we define two additional Idd loci--Idd18.2 and Idd18.4--within the boundaries of this cluster of disease-associated genes. Idd18.2 is 1.31 Mb and contains 18 genes, including Ptpn22, which encodes a phosphatase that negatively regulates T and B cell signaling. The human ortholog of Ptpn22, PTPN22, is associated with numerous autoimmune diseases, including T1D. We, therefore, assessed Ptpn22 as a candidate for Idd18.2; resequencing of the NOD Ptpn22 allele revealed 183 single nucleotide polymorphisms with the C57BL/6J (B6) allele--6 exonic and 177 intronic. Functional studies showed higher expression of full-length Ptpn22 RNA and protein, and decreased TCR signaling in congenic strains with B6-derived Idd18.2 susceptibility alleles. The 953-kb Idd18.4 locus contains eight genes, including the candidate Cd2. The CD2 pathway is associated with the human autoimmune disease, multiple sclerosis, and mice with NOD-derived susceptibility alleles at Idd18.4 have lower CD2 expression on B cells. Furthermore, we observed that susceptibility alleles at Idd18.2 can mask the protection provided by Idd10/Cd101 or Idd18.1/Vav3 and Idd18.3. In summary, we describe two new T1D loci, Idd18.2 and Idd18.4, candidate genes within each region, and demonstrate the complex nature of genetic interactions underlying the development of T1D in the NOD mouse model.

Alleles↗

NOD.c3c4 congenic mice develop autoimmune biliary disease that serologically and pathogenetically models human primary biliary cirrhosis.

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) is an autoimmune disease with a strong genetic component characterized by biliary ductular inflammation with eventual liver cirrhosis. The serologic hallmark of PBC is antimitochondrial antibodies that react with the pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, targeting the inner lipoyl domain of the E2 subunit (anti-PDC-E2). Herein we demonstrate that NOD.c3c4 mice congenically derived from the nonobese diabetic strain develop an autoimmune biliary disease (ABD) that models human PBC. NOD.c3c4 (at 9-10 wk, before significant biliary pathology) develop antibodies to PDC-E2 that are specific for the inner lipoyl domain. Affected areas of biliary epithelium are infiltrated with CD3+, CD4+, and CD8+ T cells, and treatment of NOD.c3c4 mice with monoclonal antibody to CD3 protects from ABD. Furthermore, NOD.c3c4-scid mice develop disease after adoptive transfer of splenocytes or CD4+ T cells, demonstrating a central role for T cells in pathogenesis. Histological analysis reveals destructive cholangitis, granuloma formation, and eosinophilic infiltration as seen in PBC, although, unlike PBC, the extrahepatic biliary ducts are also affected. Using a congenic mapping approach, we define the first ABD (Abd) locus, Abd1. These results identify the NOD.c3c4 mouse as the first spontaneous mouse model of PBC.

Adoptive Transfer↗

In vivo RNA interference demonstrates a role for Nramp1 in modifying susceptibility to type 1 diabetes.

Type 1 diabetes is an autoimmune disease influenced by multiple genetic loci. Although more than 20 insulin-dependent diabetes (Idd) loci have been implicated in the nonobese diabetic (NOD) mouse model, few causal gene variants have been identified. Here we show that RNA interference (RNAi) can be used to probe candidate genes in this disease model. Slc11a1 encodes a phagosomal ion transporter, Nramp1, that affects resistance to intracellular pathogens and influences antigen presentation. This gene is the strongest candidate among the 42 genes in the Idd5.2 region; a naturally occurring mutation in the protective Idd5.2 haplotype results in loss of function of the Nramp1 protein. Using lentiviral transgenesis, we generated NOD mice in which Slc11a1 is silenced by RNAi. Silencing reduced the frequency of type 1 diabetes, mimicking the protective Idd5.2 region. Our results demonstrate a role for Slc11a1 in modifying susceptibility to type 1 diabetes and illustrate that RNAi can be used to study causal genes in a mammalian model organism.

Animals↗

Different roles of liver X receptor alpha and beta in lipid metabolism: effects of an alpha-selective and a dual agonist in mice deficient in each subtype.

Liver X receptor (LXR) alpha and LXRbeta are closely related nuclear receptors that respond to elevated levels of intracellular cholesterol by enhancing transcription of genes that control cholesterol efflux and fatty acid biosynthesis. The consequences of inactivation of either LXR isoform have been thoroughly studied, as have the effects of simultaneous activation of both LXRalpha and LXRbeta by synthetic compounds. We here describe the effects of selective activation of LXRalpha or LXRbeta on lipid metabolism. This was accomplished by treating mice genetically deficient in either LXRalpha or LXRbeta with an agonist with equal potency for both isoforms (Compound B) or a synthetic agonist selective for LXRalpha (Compound A). We also determined the effect of these agonists on gene expression and cholesterol efflux in peritoneal macrophages derived from wild-type and knockout mice. Both compounds raised HDL-cholesterol and increased liver triglycerides in wild-type mice; in contrast, in mice deficient in LXRalpha, Compound B increased HDL-cholesterol but did not cause hepatic steatosis. Compound B induced ATP-binding cassette transporter (ABC) A1 expression and stimulated cholesterol efflux in macrophages from both LXRalpha and LXRbeta-deficient mice. Our data lend further experimental support to the hypothesis that LXRbeta-selective agonists may raise HDL-cholesterol and stimulate macrophage cholesterol efflux without causing liver triglyceride accumulation.

8-Bromo Cyclic Adenosine Monophosphate↗

Type 1 diabetes genes and pathways shared by humans and NOD mice.

The identification of causative genes for the autoimmune disease type 1 diabetes (T1D) in humans and candidate genes in the NOD mouse has made significant progress in recent years. In addition to sharing structural aspects of the MHC class II molecules that confer susceptibility or resistance to T1D, genes and pathways contributing to autoimmune pathogenesis are held in common by the two species. There are data demonstrating a similar need to establish central tolerance to insulin. Gene variants for the interacting molecules IL2 and CD25, members of a pathway that is essential for immune homeostasis, are present in mice and humans, respectively. Variation of two molecules that negatively regulate T cells, CTLA-4 and the tyrosine phosphatase LYP/PEP, are associated with susceptibility to human and NOD T1D. These observations underscore the value of the NOD mouse model for mechanistic studies on human T1D-associated molecular and cellular pathways.

Animals↗

Construction and analysis of tag single nucleotide polymorphism maps for six human-mouse orthologous candidate genes in type 1 diabetes.

BACKGROUND: One strategy to help identify susceptibility genes for complex, multifactorial diseases is to map disease loci in a representative animal model of the disorder. The nonobese diabetic (NOD) mouse is a model for human type 1 diabetes. Linkage and congenic strain analyses have identified several NOD mouse Idd (insulin dependent diabetes) loci, which have been mapped to small chromosome intervals, for which the orthologous regions in the human genome can be identified. Here, we have conducted re-sequencing and association analysis of six orthologous genes identified in NOD Idd loci: NRAMP1/SLC11A1 (orthologous to Nramp1/Slc11a1 in Idd5.2), FRAP1 (orthologous to Frap1 in Idd9.2), 4-1BB/CD137/TNFRSF9 (orthologous to 4-1bb/Cd137/Tnrfrsf9 in Idd9.3), CD101/IGSF2 (orthologous to Cd101/Igsf2 in Idd10), B2M (orthologous to B2m in Idd13) and VAV3 (orthologous to Vav3 in Idd18). RESULTS: Re-sequencing of a total of 110 kb of DNA from 32 or 96 type 1 diabetes cases yielded 220 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs). Sixty-five SNPs, including 54 informative tag SNPs, and a microsatellite were selected and genotyped in up to 1,632 type 1 diabetes families and 1,709 cases and 1,829 controls. CONCLUSION: None of the candidate regions showed evidence of association with type 1 diabetes (P values > 0.2), indicating that common variation in these key candidate genes does not play a major role in type 1 diabetes susceptibility in the European ancestry populations studied.

Animals↗

An autoimmune disease-associated CTLA4 splice variant lacking the B7 binding domain signals negatively in T cells.

Cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen 4 (CTLA4) plays a critical role in down-regulating T cell responses. A number of autoimmune diseases have shown genetic linkage to the CTLA4 locus. We have cloned and expressed an alternatively spliced form of CTLA4 that has genetic linkage with type 1 diabetes in NOD mice. This splice variant of CTLA4, named ligand-independent CTLA4 (liCTLA4), lacks exon 2 including the MYPPPY motif essential for binding to the costimulatory ligands B7-1 and B7-2. liCTLA4 is expressed as a protein in primary T cells and strongly inhibits T cell responses by binding and dephosphorylating the TcRzeta chain. Expression of liCTLA4, but not full length CTLA4 (flCTLA4), was higher in memory/regulatory T cells from diabetes resistant NOD congenic mice compared to susceptible NOD mice. Transgenic expression of liCTLA4 in autoimmune prone Ctla4 -/- mice inhibited spontaneous T cell activation and prevented early lethality in the Ctla4 -/- mice. Thus, increased expression and negative signalling delivered by the liCTLA4 may play a critical role in regulating the development of T cell-mediated autoimmune diseases.

Animals↗

Natural genetic variants influencing type 1 diabetes in humans and in the NOD mouse.

The understanding of the genetic basis of type 1 diabetes and other autoimmune diseases and the application of that knowledge to their treatment, cure and eventual prevention has been a difficult goal to reach. Cumulative progress in both mouse and human are finally giving way to some successes and significant insights have been made in the last few years. Investigators have identified key immune tolerance-associated phenotypes in convincingly reliable ways that are regulated by specific diabetes-associated chromosomal intervals. The combination of positional genetics and functional studies is a powerful approach to the identification of downstream molecular events that are causal in disease aetiology. In the case of type 1 diabetes, the availability of several animal models, especially the NOD mouse, has complemented the efforts to localize human genes causing diabetes and has shown that some of the same genes and pathways are associated with autoimmunity in both species. There is also growing evidence that the initiation or progression of many autoimmune diseases is likely to be influenced by some of the same genes.

Animals↗

Genetic and functional association of the immune signaling molecule 4-1BB (CD137/TNFRSF9) with type 1 diabetes.

Idd9.3, a locus that determines susceptibility to the autoimmune disease type 1 diabetes (T1D) in the nonobese diabetic (NOD) mouse, has been mapped to the distal region of chromosome 4. In the current report we reduce the size of the Idd9.3 interval to 1.2Mb containing 15 genes, including one encoding the immune signaling molecule, 4-1BB, which shows amino acid variation between diabetes sensitive and resistant strains. 4-1BB, a member of the TNF receptor superfamily expressed by a variety of immune cells, mediates growth and survival signals for T cells. Functional analyses demonstrate that purified T cells from NOD congenic mice with the C57BL/10 (B10) allele at Idd9.3 produce more IL-2 and proliferate more vigorously in response to anti-CD3 plus immobilized 4-1BB ligand than T cells from NOD mice with the NOD allele at Idd9.3. In contrast, the response to anti-CD3 plus anti-CD28 costimulation was indistinguishable between the congenic strains, pinpointing the differences in NOD versus NOD.B10 Idd9.3 T cell responses to the 4-1BB costimulatory pathway. These data provide evidence in support of Idd9.3 as the locus encoding 4-1BB and suggest that the 4-1BB signaling pathway could have a primary function in the etiology of autoimmune disease.

Animals↗

Autoimmune diabetes and resistance to xenograft transplantation tolerance in NOD mice.

Costimulation blockade induces prolonged rat islet and skin xenograft survival in C57BL/6 mice. Nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice, which are used to model human autoimmune diabetes, are resistant to costimulation blockade-induced allograft tolerance. We tested the hypothesis that NOD mice would also be resistant to costimulation blockade-induced rat xenograft tolerance. We report that rat islet xenograft survival is short in spontaneously diabetic NOD mice treated with a tolerizing regimen of donor-specific transfusion and anti-CD154 antibody. Rat islet xenograft survival is only marginally longer in chemically diabetic NOD mice treated with costimulation blockade but is prolonged further in NOD Idd congenic mice bearing C57-derived chromosome 3 loci. Reciprocally, the presence of NOD-derived chromosome 3 loci shortens islet xenograft survival in tolerized C57BL/6 mice. Islet xenograft survival is longer in tolerized NOD.CD4a(-/-) and (NOD x C57BL/6)F1 mice than in NOD mice but still much shorter than in C57BL/6 mice. Skin xenograft survival in (NOD x C57BL/6)F1 mice treated with costimulation blockade is short, suggesting a strong genetic resistance to skin xenograft tolerance induction. We conclude that the resistance of NOD mice to xenograft tolerance induction involves some mechanisms that also participate in the expression of autoimmunity and other mechanisms that are distinct.

Animals↗

Genetic control of autoimmunity: protection from diabetes, but spontaneous autoimmune biliary disease in a nonobese diabetic congenic strain.

At least 20 insulin-dependent diabetes (Idd) loci modify the progression of autoimmune diabetes in the NOD mouse, an animal model of human type 1 diabetes. The NOD.c3c4 congenic mouse, which has multiple B6- and B10-derived Idd-resistant alleles on chromosomes 3 and 4, respectively, is completely protected from autoimmune diabetes. We demonstrate in this study, however, that NOD.c3c4 mice develop a novel spontaneous and fatal autoimmune polycystic biliary tract disease, with lymphocytic peribiliary infiltrates and autoantibodies. Strains having a subset of the Idd-resistant alleles present in the NOD.c3c4 strain show component phenotypes of the liver disease: NOD mice with B6 resistance alleles only on chromosome 3 have lymphocytic liver infiltration without autoantibody formation, while NOD mice with B10 resistance alleles only on chromosome 4 show autoantibody formation without liver infiltration. The liver disease is transferable to naive NOD.c3c4 recipients using splenocytes from affected NOD.c3c4 mice, demonstrating an autoimmune etiology. Thus, substitution of non-NOD genetic intervals into the NOD strain can prevent diabetes, but in turn cause an entirely different autoimmune syndrome, a finding consistent with a generalized failure of self-tolerance in the NOD genetic background. The complex clinical phenotypes in human autoimmune conditions may be similarly resolved into largely overlapping biochemical pathways that are then modified, potentially by alleles at a few key chromosomal regions, to produce specific autoimmune syndromes.

Adoptive Transfer↗

The diabetes susceptibility locus Idd5.1 on mouse chromosome 1 regulates ICOS expression and modulates murine experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.

Linkage analysis and congenic mapping in NOD mice have identified a susceptibility locus for type 1 diabetes, Idd5.1 on mouse chromosome 1, which includes the Ctla4 and Icos genes. Besides type 1 diabetes, numerous autoimmune diseases have been mapped to a syntenic region on human chromosome 2q33. In this study we determined how the costimulatory molecules encoded by these genes contribute to the immunopathogenesis of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). When we compared levels of expression of costimulatory molecules on T cells, we found higher ICOS and lower full-length CTLA-4 expression on activated NOD T cells compared with C57BL/6 (B6) and C57BL/10 (B10) T cells. Using NOD.B10 Idd5 congenic strains, we determined that a 2.1-Mb region controls the observed expression differences of ICOS. Although Idd5.1 congenic mice are resistant to diabetes, we found them more susceptible to myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein 35-55-induced EAE compared with NOD mice. Our data demonstrate that higher ICOS expression correlates with more IL-10 production by NOD-derived T cells, and this may be responsible for the less severe EAE in NOD mice compared with Idd5.1 congenic mice. Paradoxically, alleles at the Idd5.1 locus have opposite effects on two autoimmune diseases, diabetes and EAE. This may reflect differential roles for costimulatory pathways in inducing autoimmune responses depending upon the origin (tissue) of the target Ag.

Animals↗

Fine mapping, gene content, comparative sequencing, and expression analyses support Ctla4 and Nramp1 as candidates for Idd5.1 and Idd5.2 in the nonobese diabetic mouse.

At least two loci that determine susceptibility to type 1 diabetes in the NOD mouse have been mapped to chromosome 1, Idd5.1 (insulin-dependent diabetes 5.1) and Idd5.2. In this study, using a series of novel NOD.B10 congenic strains, Idd5.1 has been defined to a 2.1-Mb region containing only four genes, Ctla4, Icos, Als2cr19, and Nrp2 (neuropilin-2), thereby excluding a major candidate gene, Cd28. Genomic sequence comparison of the two functional candidate genes, Ctla4 and Icos, from the B6 (resistant at Idd5.1) and the NOD (susceptible at Idd5.1) strains revealed 62 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), only two of which were in coding regions. One of these coding SNPs, base 77 of Ctla4 exon 2, is a synonymous SNP and has been correlated previously with type 1 diabetes susceptibility and differential expression of a CTLA-4 isoform. Additional expression studies in this work support the hypothesis that this SNP in exon 2 is the genetic variation causing the biological effects of Idd5.1. Analysis of additional congenic strains has also localized Idd5.2 to a small region (1.52 Mb) of chromosome 1, but in contrast to the Idd5.1 interval, Idd5.2 contains at least 45 genes. Notably, the Idd5.2 region still includes the functionally polymorphic Nramp1 gene. Future experiments to test the identity of Idd5.1 and Idd5.2 as Ctla4 and Nramp1, respectively, can now be justified using approaches to specifically alter or mimic the candidate causative SNPs.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

An autoimmune disease-associated CTLA-4 splice variant lacking the B7 binding domain signals negatively in T cells.

Cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated antigen-4 (CTLA-4) plays a critical role in downregulating T cell responses. A number of autoimmune diseases have shown genetic linkage to the CTLA-4 locus. We have cloned and expressed an alternatively spliced form of CTLA-4 that has genetic linkage with type I diabetes in the NOD mice. This splice variant of CTLA-4, named ligand-independent CTLA-4 (liCTLA-4), lacks exon2 including the MYPPPY motif essential for binding to the costimulatory ligands B7-1 and B7-2. Here we show that liCTLA-4 is expressed as a protein in primary T cells and strongly inhibits T cell responses by binding and dephosphorylating the TcRzeta chain. Expression of liCTLA-4, but not full-length CTLA-4 (flCTLA-4), was higher in memory/regulatory T cells from diabetes-resistant NOD congenic mice compared to susceptible NOD mice. These data suggest that increased expression and negative signaling delivered by the liCTLA-4 may regulate development of T cell-mediated autoimmune diseases.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Islet allograft survival induced by costimulation blockade in NOD mice is controlled by allelic variants of Idd3.

NOD mice develop type 1 autoimmune diabetes and exhibit genetically dominant resistance to transplantation tolerance induction. These two phenotypes are genetically separable. Costimulation blockade fails to prolong skin allograft survival in (NOD x C57BL/6)F1 mice and in NOD-related strains made diabetes-resistant by congenic introduction of protective major histocompatibility complex (MHC) or non-MHC Idd region genes. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the genetic basis for the resistance of NOD mice to skin allograft tolerance also applies to islet allografts. Surprisingly, costimulation blockade induced permanent islet allograft survival in (NOD x C57BL/6)F1 mice but not in NOD mice. After costimulation blockade, islet allograft survival was prolonged in diabetes-resistant NOD.B6 Idd3 mice and shortened in diabetes-free C57BL/6 mice congenic for the NOD Idd3 variant. Islet allograft tolerance could not be induced in diabetes-resistant NOD.B10 Idd5 and NOD.B10 Idd9 mice. The data demonstrate that 1) NOD mice resist islet allograft tolerance induction; 2) unlike skin allografts, resistance to islet allograft tolerance is a genetically recessive trait; 3) an Idd3 region gene(s) is an important determinant of islet allograft tolerance induction; and 4) there may be overlap in the mechanism by which the Idd3 resistance locus improves self-tolerance and the induction of allotolerance.

Alleles↗

Genetic disassociation of autoimmunity and resistance to costimulation blockade-induced transplantation tolerance in nonobese diabetic mice.

Curing type 1 diabetes by islet transplantation requires overcoming both allorejection and recurrent autoimmunity. This has been achieved with systemic immunosuppression, but tolerance induction would be preferable. Most islet allotransplant tolerance induction protocols have been tested in nonobese diabetic (NOD) mice, and most have failed. Failure has been attributed to the underlying autoimmunity, assuming that autoimmunity and resistance to transplantation tolerance have a common basis. Out of concern that NOD biology could be misleading in this regard, we tested the hypothesis that autoimmunity and resistance to transplantation tolerance in NOD mice are distinct phenotypes. Unexpectedly, we observed that (NOD x C57BL/6)F(1) mice, which have no diabetes, nonetheless resist prolongation of skin allografts by costimulation blockade. Further analyses revealed that the F(1) mice shared the dendritic cell maturation defects and abnormal CD4(+) T cell responses of the NOD but had lost its defects in macrophage maturation and NK cell activity. We conclude that resistance to allograft tolerance induction in the NOD mouse is not a direct consequence of overt autoimmunity and that autoimmunity and resistance to costimulation blockade-induced transplantation tolerance phenotypes in NOD mice can be dissociated genetically. The outcomes of tolerance induction protocols tested in NOD mice may not accurately predict outcomes in human subjects.

Animals↗

Association of the T-cell regulatory gene CTLA4 with susceptibility to autoimmune disease.

Genes and mechanisms involved in common complex diseases, such as the autoimmune disorders that affect approximately 5% of the population, remain obscure. Here we identify polymorphisms of the cytotoxic T lymphocyte antigen 4 gene (CTLA4)--which encodes a vital negative regulatory molecule of the immune system--as candidates for primary determinants of risk of the common autoimmune disorders Graves' disease, autoimmune hypothyroidism and type 1 diabetes. In humans, disease susceptibility was mapped to a non-coding 6.1 kb 3' region of CTLA4, the common allelic variation of which was correlated with lower messenger RNA levels of the soluble alternative splice form of CTLA4. In the mouse model of type 1 diabetes, susceptibility was also associated with variation in CTLA-4 gene splicing with reduced production of a splice form encoding a molecule lacking the CD80/CD86 ligand-binding domain. Genetic mapping of variants conferring a small disease risk can identify pathways in complex disorders, as exemplified by our discovery of inherited, quantitative alterations of CTLA4 contributing to autoimmune tissue destruction.

Abatacept↗