Background
Plant homoeodomain finger protein 11 (PHF11) is highly expressed in circulating immune cells, with increased expression in T-helper 1 (Th1) T-cells relative to Th2 T-cells [
1]. Knock-down of PHF11 using small interfering RNA (siRNA) decreases expression of the interferon-γ (
IFNG) gene in Th1 cells [
1] through a mechanism that involves a reduction in NFκB-dependent transcriptional activity [
1,
2]. A role for PHF11 in
IFNG gene expression, and more recently the finding that PHF11 increases class switch recombination to IgE in murine B-cells [
3], supports a role for PHF11 in allergic disease. A link between
PHF11 and allergic disease was shown in earlier genetic linkage and association studies [
4‐
6], with alternate alleles of a single nucleotide polymorphism in the 3’ non-translated exon of
PHF11 associated with a change in the expression of this gene in Th1 cells [
1] through differential binding of the transcription factor Oct-1 [
7]. Although recent genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of asthma and atopic dermatitis have not supported a genetic association between
PHF11 and allergy, it remains possible that there may be an association in selected cohorts of severely affected individuals who show a very early age of onset with highly elevated IgE levels and who are more likely to require treatment by specialist clinicians [
8].
Allergic asthma and dermatitis are characterized by immune sensitization, which refers to the initial recognition of an antigen by the immune system and the production of antigen-specific IgE antibodies. In susceptible individuals any subsequent exposure to the same allergen will result in a robust and aggressive immune response. It is now apparent that there is a link between immune sensitization and the integrity of the skin barrier. As an example, filaggrin is a protein found in the outermost layer of the epidermis called the stratum corneum and is essential for the integrity of the skin barrier (for review, see [
9]). Mutations in the gene encoding filaggrin (
FLG) are associated with immune sensitization in allergic dermatitis and asthma [
10,
11] and these mutations cause an impairment of the skin barrier function [
12,
13]. Genetic association between a locus containing the gene
C11orf30 is highly reproduced in GWAS of asthma and dermatitis [
14‐
16], and although the functional relationship between
C11orf30 or other nearby genes with asthma and dermatitis is not understood, the protein product of
C11orf30 (EMSY) is important in epithelial tumours of the breast and ovary [
17,
18].
In addition to a genetic basis for a compromised skin barrier, elevated expression of Th2-type cytokines such as interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-13 in the skin of individuals with atopic dermatitis decreases filaggrin expression [
19]. These cytokines also decrease the expression of the tight junction protein claudin-1 in the skin of individuals with atopic dermatitis [
20]. The combination of genetic and inflammatory triggers that result in a decrease in the integrity of the skin barrier are also linked to the high rate of bacterial and viral skin infections of individuals with atopic dermatitis [
21,
22]. Keratinocytes express several members of the Toll-like Receptor (TLR) family that are pattern recognition receptors for viral and bacterial pathogens. The TLR3 recognizes double-stranded RNA that is a replication intermediate for a number of viruses, as well as RNA that is released from damaged cells. Activation of TLR3 is an important part of the keratinocyte innate immune response [
23], as well as the repair and maintenance of the skin barrier [
24,
25].
A review of the literature revealed that
PHF11 is an interferon stimulated gene (ISG) and that its expression is increased following infection by several different viruses [
26‐
29]. Although previous functional studies of
PHF11 have centered on its role in the regulation of cytokine gene expression in T-lymphocytes [
1,
2], the susceptibility of individuals with atopic dermatitis to viral infection and the finding that
PHF11 is an ISG has led us to test for
PHF11 expression in keratinocytes and whether its expression is regulated by polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C)), a ligand for TLR3 and an analogue of double-stranded RNA.
In this study we report that PHF11 is expressed in the human HaCaT keratinocyte cell line and that treatment of this cell line with the double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) analogue poly(I:C) resulted in an increase in PHF11 expression and the localization to the nucleus of the PHF11 protein. Furthermore, siRNA knock-down of PHF11 mRNA resulted in a loss of PHF11 from the nucleus and this was accompanied by an increase in IL-8 expression, altered appearance of claudin-1 at the cell membrane and the appearance of claudin-1 in the nucleus. We suggest that in addition to its role in circulating T-cells, PHF11 also plays a role in the innate immune response of keratinocytes and that a reduction in PHF11 expression may contribute to inflammation and tissue remodeling following infection or tissue damage.
Methods
Cell culture
HaCaT Keratinocytes were grown in a complete cell culture medium consisting of Dulbecco’s Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM) and 10 % fetal bovine serum (FBS) at 37 °C in a humidified atmosphere containing 5 % CO2.
cDNA synthesis and quantitative real-time PCR
Total RNA was harvested using the PureLink® RNA Mini kit (Ambion®/Life TechnologiesTM, Austin, TX, USA) and cDNA was synthesized from 1 μg of RNA using the Applied Biosystems High-Capacity cDNA Reverse Transcription Kit according to the manufacturers instructions. Quantitative real-time PCR was done using SYBR® PCR Master Mix (Applied Biosystems, Austin, TX, USA), 0.1 μM of forward and reverse primers in a final volume 10 μl. Reactions were transferred to an Illumina Eco 48-well plate and analysed using an Illumina® Eco real-time PCR system. Primer sequences are shown in Table
1.
Table 1
Primers used for Quantitative real-time PCR
Claudin-1 | 109 | F: GGTCAGGCTCTCTTCACTGG |
R: GCCTTGGTGTTGGGTAAGAG |
IL-8 | 109 | F: TCTGCAGCTCTGTGTGAAGG |
R: AAATTTGGGGTGGAAAGGTT |
ISG15 | 97 | F: AGCATCTTCACCGTCAGGTC |
R: GAGAGGCAGCGAACTCATCT |
KRT10 | 91 | F: CCTGGCTTCCTACTTGGACA |
R; TTGCCATGCTTTTCATACCA |
KRT14 | 90 | F: TCCTCAGGTCCTCAATGGTC |
R: CGACCTGGAAGTGAAGATCC |
KRT1 | 110 | F: CAACCAGAGCCTTCTTCAGC |
R: AGGAGGCAAATTGGTTGTTG |
PHF11 | 140 | R: TCCTGCTTCCTTGCATTTCT |
F: GGAAGGAAGAAACCCCTCTC |
SDHA | 86 | F: TGGGAACAAGAGGGCATCTG |
R: CCACCACTGCATCAAATTCATG |
siRNA knockdown
All siRNAs have been previously tested and validated [
2]. The sequence of PHF11-specific siRNAs are: siRNA siRNA_1 CACCGTGGGATGTGATTTAAA (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany, cat no. SI00113554) and siRNA_5 ATCATCGCTCAAAGTGCTAAA (Qiagen, cat no. SI03047198), mapping to exons 4 and 5 of PHF11 isoform NM_001040443.1, respectively. On the day of transfection, HaCaT keratinocytes were harvested and resuspended at a concentration of 1 × 10
5 cells in 300 μl of complete cell culture media. 600 ng of siRNA was diluted in 100 μl of Optimem culture media (Gibco®/Life Technologies, Austin, TX, USA), followed by the addition of 6 μl of Hiperfect® Transfection reagent (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany). Following a 10 min incubation at room temperature, the siRNA mixture was combined with the HaCaT cells and plated directly onto 24-well plates (1 × 10
5 cells/well) or an 8-well Nunc® Lab-Tek® Chamber slide (5 × 10
4 cells/well) and incubated overnight at 37 °C/5%CO
2. The transfection solution was then replaced with complete cell culture medium and the cells were returned to the incubator for a further 2 days, and then treated with poly(I:C) for 24 h. Cells were harvested either 24 or 96 h after treatment with poly(I:C).
HEK Cell transfection and PHF11 expression plasmids
Full-length PHF11 cDNA was cloned into the plasmid expression vector pEGFP-C1 (Clontech) and was then used as a template to generate the two C-terminal deletion constructs del218 and del165 that terminate at valine residue 218 and alanine residue 165, respectively. Numbering of amino acids is based on NCBI reference sequence NP_001035533.1. Transfection of HEK cells was done as previously described [
1]. Identification of a putative nuclear localization sequence was done using the following online tool:
http://nls-mapper.iab.keio.ac.jp/cgi-bin/NLS_Mapper_form.cgi. Western blot analysis confirmed that each recombinant protein was expressed at the predicted molecular weight (data not shown). Images were analysed using ImageJ (
http://imagej.nih.gov/ij/).
Immunofluorescence
In experiments to visualize IL-8 production, 0.5 mM Monensin sodium salt (Sigma, St. Louis, USA) was added to the culture media and cells returned to 37 °C/5%CO
2 for the final 4 h of stimulation by poly(I:C) [
30]. To visualize IL-8, as well as claudin-1 and PHF11, cells were fixed in a 4 % formaldehyde solution for 10 min at room temperature, washed and permeabilized by washing for 3 × 5 min in PBS/0.01 % Triton X100. Cells were then blocked in Image-iT™ FX Signal Enhancer (Molecular Probes, Oregon, USA) for 30 min and washed a further 3 × 5 min in PBS/0.01 % Triton X100. The cells were incubated with the following primary antibodies in blocking buffer (1%BSA, 0.01 % Triton X100, 5 % FCS in PBS) overnight at 4 °C: rabbit anti-Claudin 1 (1:1000, Sigma-Aldrich, SAB4503546), rabbit anti-PHF11 (1:100, ProteinTech Group, 10898-1-AP), mouse anti-CXCL8/IL-8 (10 μg/ml, R&D systems, MAB208). Cells were then washed for 3 × 5 min in PBS/0.01 % Triton X100 and then incubated with a 1:1000 dilution Alexa Flour® 488 goat anti-rabbit IgG (H + L) and/or a 1:1000 dilution of Alexa Flour® 555 goat anti-mouse IgG (H + L) (Molecular probes/Life Technologies™, Austin, TX, USA) in blocking buffer at room temperature for 1 h in the dark. Cells were washed 2 × 5 min in PBS/0.01 % Triton X100, and nuclear DNA was stained using a solution of 1 μg/ml Hoechst 33342 (Molecular probes/Life Technologies™, Austin, TX, USA) for 10 min at room temperature protected from light. After a final 5 min wash in PBS/0.01 % Triton X100, 2 drops of ProLong® Gold antifade reagent was added to the slide and covered with a glass cover slip. Slides were viewed on an Olympus BX43 Microscope fitted with an X-Cite Series 120Q EXFO Halogen Lamp using cellSens standard software or using a TCS-SP5 confocal microscope (Leica Microsystems, Germany).
IL-8 enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)
Cells were transfected with siRNA as described and 1 × 104 cells were plated per well in a 96-well plate in triplicate. Following 24 h treatment with poly(I:C), the concentration of secreted IL-8 was determined using the Human CXCL8/IL-8 Quantikine ELISA (R & D Systems, MN, USA, Cat no. D8000C). The amount of secreted IL-8 was normalized to cell number using the CyQUANT NF Cell Proliferation Assay Kit (Molecular probes/Life Technologies™, Austin, TX, USA). Results represent the outcome of 4 independent siRNA transfections.
Cell cycle analysis
At the conclusion of an experiment, cell culture media was removed and the cells harvested using trypsin. Cells were washed once in 5 ml of PBS, and then resuspended and fixed in 5 ml of 70 % (v/v) ethanol (Sigma-Aldrich) at 4 °C for up to 7 days. Following fixation, cells were centrifuged at 300 × g for 5 mins at room temperature, washed in PBS, and then resuspended in a solution of 1 μl RNase, 2 μl 10x propidium iodine (PI) (Sigma-Aldrich) in PBS and incubated at 37 °C for 50 min. Cells were then collected by centrifugation at 300 × g for 5 min at room temperature and the cell pellet resuspended in 1 ml of PBS. Samples were analysed using a FACSCanto II (BD Bioscience, Franklin Lake NJ, USA). Ten thousand events were collected per sample and data was exported and analysed using FlowJo Flow Cytometry Analysis Software 7.6.5 (Tree Star, Ashland, OR, USA). A scatterplot was created and the region containing the G1, S and G2/M peaks was gated to select singlet cells. A histogram of the gated region was produced and live cells as well as sub-G1 cells were defined. Cell cycle analysis was done using the Dean-Jett-Fox model.
Discussion
Extending on our previous work showing increased nuclear localization of PHF11 in activated T-cells [
2], we show here that stimulation of HaCaT keratinocytes by poly(I:C) increased
PHF11 RNA as well as the nuclear localization of PHF11. The distribution of PHF11 between the cytoplasm and the nucleus was dependent upon a region that included a putative NLS that was distinct from the single PHD finger. Knock-down of
PHF11 led to an increase in IL-8 expression immediately following poly(I:C) treatment. A decrease in cell number, redistribution of claudin-1 within the cell membrane and an increased frequency of claudin-1 in the nucleus was seen three days after the withdrawal of poly(I:C).
In the HaCaT cell line, poly(I:C) induces apoptosis in a caspase-8 dependent manner [
32], as well as inducing the transcription and synthesis of IL-8 [
23]. Normal keratinocytes and the HaCaT cell line synthesize IL-8 and express the IL-8 receptors CXCR1 and CXCR2 [
36,
37], allowing IL-8 to act as an autocrine factor for keratinocyte migration and proliferation [
36], in addition to promoting the recruitment of neutrophils to a wound site [
38]. The binding of dsRNA to TLR3 on keratinocytes initiates signaling pathways that include the activation of the NF-κB transcription factor as well as anti-viral interferon-dependent pathways. The cellular response to intracellular influenza A virus and extracellular poly(I:C) is very similar in lung epithelial cells, although adding poly(I:C) directly to the cell culture media, as was done in the study reported here, may also mimic the release endogenous cellular or viral dsRNA from damaged cells and the activation of TLR3 [
39].
Consistent with a pro-inflammatory and pro-apoptotic role for poly(I:C) on cultured keratinocytes, poly(I:C) treatment leads to the loss of tight junctions from airway epithelial cells [
40]. However, poly(I:C) also increases the expression of genes involved in skin barrier formation in cultured keratinocytes [
25], while topical application of poly(I:C) accelerates wound healing in mice through the production of CXCL2 and the recruitment of neutrophils and macrophages to the wounded site [
41]. Given the range of these effects and their importance to epithelial damage and repair, it is important to identify genes involved in TLR3-dependent signaling pathways that mediate the response to poly(I:C).
In experiments described here, HaCaT cells were transfected with siRNA and then two days later treated with poly(I:C) for 24 h, with knock-down of
PHF11 expression correlated with an increase in poly(I:C)-dependent IL-8 expression. Three days after withdrawal of poly(I:C) we observed marked differences in the appearance of cultures transfected with control or
PHF11-specific siRNA. The distribution of membrane-localized claudin-1 in cells transfected with
PHF11-specific siRNA was discontinuous and irregular and was highly reminiscent of the “zigzag” structure of tight junctions described at the junction of two motile cells by Matsuda and co-workers [
42]. We also noted the appearance of nuclear claudin-1, accompanied by a significant decrease in both cell number and the proportion of cells in G1, as well as an increase in nuclear and cytoplasmic volume that is a feature of the progression of cells through the cell cycle [
43]. Significantly, neither the change in claudin-1 distribution, nor the decrease in cell number seen in cells transfected with
PHF11-specific siRNA was dependent on prior treatment with poly(I:C).
Colon carcinoma cells show an increase in the cytoplasmic expression and nuclear localization of claudin-1 in primary tumours and metastases and knock-down of claudin-1 expression in cultured cell lines inhibits cell migration [
44]. Several other membrane and tight-junction proteins also traffic between the membrane and the nucleus; the protein Zona Occludens 2 (ZO-2) interacts with several transcription factors and structural proteins in the nucleus to regulate cell growth and proliferation (for review see [
45]). The exact role of claudin-1 in the nucleus is not known. We suggest that the change in cellular distribution of claudin-1 in HaCaT cells transfected with
PHF11-specific siRNA might not be a direct effect of PHF11 knock-down, but is instead a result of differences in cell proliferation between cells transfected with control or
PHF11-specific siRNA.
A genome-wide screen using RNA-interference gene knock-down was recently carried out in mice to identify genes involved in normal and oncogenic growth during skin development. This analysis identified
PHF11 as one of 1800 genes considered essential for normal growth [
46]. It is interesting to note that an allele in the 3’ untranslated region of
PHF11 that is associated with asthma and dermatitis [
5] reduces the expression of
PHF11 [
1,
7] and that this is correlated with reduced binding of the transcription factor Oct-1 [
7], which is highly expressed in epithelial cells. In experiments described here, we suggest that siRNA knock-down of
PHF11 expression led to a reduction in cell viability [
2] and/or a slowing of cell proliferation that resulted in a sub-confluent monolayer at day 7 of culture, resulting in fewer cells arrested at G1 in the cell cycle at his time point.
In T-cells, PHF11 is a transcriptional co-activator of NF-κB, with knock-down of PHF11 associated with decreased binding of NF-κB to the
IFNG promoter and decreased NF-κB-dependent transcription [
1,
2]. Over-expression of PHF11 increased class-switch recombination to IgE in activated B-cells and this was correlated with increased binding of NF-κB [
3]. Epidermal inflammation is regulated by NF-κB-dependent cross-talk between keratinocytes and infiltrating immune cells, while epidermal hyperplasia can be induced by dysregulation of NF-κB in keratinocytes alone [
47]. It has been shown that NF-κB is constitutively active in HaCaT keratinocytes, resulting in increased apoptosis in response to ultraviolet light [
48]. Despite the constitutive activation of NF-κB in HaCaTs, the sensitivity of this cell line to apoptotic stimuli is thought to reflect low NF-κB transcriptional activation [
49]. As PHF11 potentiates NF-κB regulated transcription in lymphocytes [
1,
2], the reason for the increase in
IL8 RNA associated with knock-down of PHF11 in HaCaT cells is less clear, given that
IL8 expression is increased in HaCaT keratinocytes through an NF-κB-dependent pathway [
50]. Significantly, a microarray analysis of poly(I:C)-stimulated THP-1 monocytes also showed an increase in
IL8 RNA following
PHF11 knock-down (G. Jones, unpublished data), supporting the idea that PHF11 may be a negative regulator of poly(I:C)-induced
IL8 expression.
In this regard it is interesting to note that
PHF11 is adjacent to the gene
SETDB2 that encodes a histone methyltransferase that increases histone methylation on lysine 9 of histone 3 [
51], a histone modification involved in gene repression. A co-transcript that may express a
PHF11/SETDB2 fusion protein has been reported in mouse [
52] and human [
53] cells. We are currently investigating whether epithelial cells express such a transcript and whether this transcript would include a functional histone methyltransferase domain.
Competing interests
None of the authors have any competing financial or non-financial interests relating to the content of this manuscript.
Authors’ contributions
PM developed the model for HaCaT culture, performed siRNA experiments and the localization of claudin-1 and PHF11. KM made the initial findings on the regulation of PHF11 by poly(I:C), KP performed cell cycle analysis, HC provided data for IL-8 expression and GJ designed the study, verified all analyses and wrote the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.