Paneth cells regulate lung ILC2 populations and allergic response in the airways

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Presentation Time: 03:15 PM - 04:30 PM
Poster Board Number: B870
Abstract ID: 5923

Presenting Author:
Marisa R. Joldrichsen , Graduate Research Associate at Ohio State Univ. Col. of Vet. Med.

Abstract:

Dysbiosis induced by factors such as diet or pollutants have been shown to promote allergy responses. The same factors can impair function of Paneth cells, but little is known about the contribution of Paneth cells to allergic responses at sites like the lungs. Using mice lacking Paneth cells, we report that the loss of Paneth cells does not impair lung function but does increase the number of immune cells present in the lungs, including a significant increase in ILC2s. We also examined how the immune cell changes in the lungs could influence allergic responses. Exposure of Paneth cell KO mice to the allergen house dust mite, 14 exposures over 18 days, significantly increased the kinetics and severity of allergic responses compared to control mice, including an increase in Th2 cytokines and an increase in IgE in both the lung fluid and the serum, confirming the anaphylactic origin of pathology. The dysbiosis in Paneth cell KO mice was associated with decreased beneficial intestinal metabolites like butyrate. Thus we addressed if metabolite supplementation could reverse the profile of lung immune cells. The addition of butyrate in the drinking water resulted in a significant decrease in the amount of ILC2s within the lungs, with minimal alterations of other cells. Together, our findings highlight the importance of intestinal epithelial cells in the regulation of allergic responses and supports that changes in intestinal epithelial cell function could help predict allergy.