title: Galectin-9 suppresses the generation of Th17, promotes the induction of regulatory T cells, and regulates experimental autoimmune arthritis.
abstract: The effects of galectin-9 on a mouse collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) model were assessed to clarify whether galectin-9 suppresses CIA by regulating T cell immune responses. Galectin-9 suppressed CIA in a dose-dependent manner, and such suppression was observed even when treatment was started on 7 days after the booster, indicating its preventive and therapeutic effects. Galectin-9 induced the decreased levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, IL-17, IL-12, and IFNgamma in the joint. Galectin-9 induced the decreased number of CD4(+) TIM-3(+) T cells in peripheral blood. Galectin-9-deficient mice became susceptible to CIA may be by increased number of CD4(+) TIM-3(+) T cells and decreased number of Treg cells. We further found that galectin-9 induces differentiation of naive T cells to Treg cells, and it suppresses differentiation to Th17 cells in vitro. The present results suggested that galectin-9 ameliorates CIA by suppressing the generation of Th17, promoting the induction of regulatory T cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology and Immunopathology, Faculty of Medicine, Kagawa University, Kagawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Masako
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Seki
authors.forename: Souichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Oomizu
authors.forename: Ken-Mei
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Sakata
authors.forename: Atsuko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sakata
authors.forename: Tomohiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Arikawa
authors.forename: Kota
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Kanako
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Keisuke
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Takeshita
authors.forename: Toshiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Niki
authors.forename: Naoki
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Saita
authors.forename: Nozomu
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nishi
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yamauchi
authors.forename: Shigeki
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Katoh
authors.forename: Akihiro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Matsukawa
authors.forename: Vijay
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Kuchroo
authors.forename: Mitsuomi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hirashima
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001169:Arthritis, Experimental / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D001324:Autoantigens / Q000276:immunology; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000276:immunology; D003094:Collagen / Q000276:immunology; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D037161:Galectins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism; D018664:Interleukin-12 / Q000378:metabolism; D020381:Interleukin-17 / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008811:Mice, Inbred DBA; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology*; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D001324:Autoantigens; D037161:Galectins; D020381:Interleukin-17; C508186:galectin 9, mouse; D018664:Interleukin-12; D007371:Interferon-gamma; D003094:Collagen