- Ma, Shengyun;
- Yang, Qiyuan;
- Chen, Nicholas;
- Zheng, Anna;
- Abbasi, Nazia;
- Wang, Gaowei;
- Patel, Parth R;
- Cho, Benjamin S;
- Yee, Brian A;
- Zhang, Lunfeng;
- Chu, Hiutung;
- Evans, Sylvia M;
- Yeo, Gene W;
- Zheng, Ye;
- Huang, Wendy Jia Men
Retinoid-related orphan receptor (RAR) gamma (RORγt)-expressing regulatory T cells (RORγt+ Tregs) play pivotal roles in preventing T cell hyperactivation and maintaining tissue homeostasis, in part by secreting the anti-inflammation cytokine interleukin-10 (IL-10). Here, we report that hypoxia-induced factor 1α (HIF1α) is the master transcription factor for Il10 in RORγt+ Tregs. This critical anti-inflammatory pathway is negatively regulated by an RNA binding protein DEAD box helicase 5 (DDX5). As a transcriptional corepressor, DDX5 restricts the expression of HIF1α and its downstream target gene Il10 in RORγt+ Tregs. T cell-specific Ddx5 knockout (DDX5ΔT) mice have augmented RORγt+ Treg suppressor activities and are better protected from intestinal inflammation. Genetic ablation or pharmacologic inhibition of HIF1α restores enteropathy susceptibility in DDX5ΔT mice. The DDX5-HIF1α-IL-10 pathway is conserved in mice and humans. These findings reveal potential therapeutic targets for intestinal inflammatory diseases.