Distinct microRNA signatures in human lymphocyte subsets and enforcement of the naive state in CD4 + T cells by the microRNA miR-125b

• Published in: Nature immunology Vol. 12; no. 8; pp. 796 - 803
• Main Authors: Abrignani, Sergio, Pagani, Massimiliano, Rossi, Riccardo L, Rossetti, Grazisa, Wenandy, Lynn, Curti, Serena, Ripamonti, Anna, Bonnal, Raoul J P, Birolo, Roberto Sciarretta, Moro, Monica, Crosti, Maria C, Gruarin, Paola, Maglie, Stefano, Marabita, Francesco, Mascheroni, Debora, Parente, Valeria, Comelli, Mario, Trabucchi, Emilio, De Francesco, Raffaele, Geginat, Jens
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Nature Publishing Group US 01-08-2011; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: 631/208/191/2018; 631/250/1619/554/1898; 631/250/2502/2055; Animals; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes - immunology; Cell differentiation; Cell Differentiation - genetics; Cell Differentiation - immunology; Computational Biology - methods; Flow Cytometry; Gene Expression Profiling - methods; Gene Expression Regulation; Humans; Immunology; Infectious Diseases; Lymphocytes; Mice; MicroRNAs - genetics; MicroRNAs - immunology; resource; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA, Messenger - biosynthesis; RNA, Messenger - genetics; T-Lymphocyte Subsets - immunology
• ISSN: 1529-2908; 1529-2916
• DOI: 10.1038/ni.2057

MicroRNAs are post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression. Pagani and colleagues identify specific microRNA signatures and their target genes in various human lymphoid subsets.
MicroRNAs are small noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally. Here we applied microRNA profiling to 17 human lymphocyte subsets to identify microRNA signatures that were distinct among various subsets and different from those of mouse lymphocytes. One of the signature microRNAs of naive CD4
+
T cells, miR-125b, regulated the expression of genes encoding molecules involved in T cell differentiation, including
IFNG
,
IL2RB
,
IL10RA
and
PRDM1
. The expression of synthetic miR-125b and lentiviral vectors encoding the precursor to miR-125b in naive lymphocytes inhibited differentiation to effector cells. Our data provide an 'atlas' of microRNA expression in human lymphocytes, define subset-specific signatures and their target genes and indicate that the naive state of T cells is enforced by microRNA.