Distinct microRNA signatures in human lymphocyte subsets and enforcement of CD4+ T cell naïveness by miR-125b

Massimiliano Pagani (1) , Riccardo Lorenzo Rossi (1) , Grazisa Rossetti (1) , Lynn Wenandy (1) , Serena Curti (1) , Anna Ripamonti (1) , Raoul Jean Pierre Bonnal (1) , Roberto Sciarretta Birolo (1) , Monica Moro (1) , Maria Cristina Crosti (1) , Paola Gruarin (1) , Stefano Maglie (1) , Francesco Marabita (1) , Debora Mascheroni (1) , Valeria Parente (1) , Mario Comelli (1) , Emilio Trabucchi (1) , Raffaele de Francesco (1) , Jens Geginat (1) , Sergio Abrignani (1)

1 Integrative Biology Program [Milano]

MicroRNAs are small non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression post-transcriptionally. Here we applied microRNA profiling in seventeen human lymphocyte subsets to identify microRNA signatures that were distinct among various subsets and different from those of mouse lymphocytes. miR-125b, one of the signature microRNAs of naïve CD4+ T cells, regulated expression of genes involved in T-cell differentiation i.e., IFNG, IL2RB, IL10RA and PRDM1. Expression of synthetic miR-125b RNA and lentiviral vectors encoding pre-miR-125b in naïve 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 T-cell naïve state is enforced by microRNAs.

Mots clés: miRNA; T cells

Massimiliano Pagani, Riccardo Lorenzo Rossi, Grazisa Rossetti, Lynn Wenandy, Serena Curti, et al.. Distinct microRNA signatures in human lymphocyte subsets and enforcement of CD4+ T cell naïveness by miR-125b. Nature Immunology, 2011, ⟨10.1038/ni.2057⟩. ⟨hal-00655061⟩