Mol Metab. 2021 Dec 22. pii: S2212-8778(21)00282-9. [Epub ahead of print] 101424
Ulrich Stifel,
Eva-Maria Wolfschmitt,
Josef Vogt,
Ulrich Wachter,
Sabine Vettorazzi,
Daniel Tews,
Melanie Hogg,
Fabian Zink,
Nora Maria Koll,
Sandra Winning,
Rémi Mounier,
Bénédicte Chazaud,
Peter Radermacher,
Pamela Fischer-Posovszky,
Giorgio Caratti,
Jan Tuckermann.
Glucocorticoids (GCs) are one of the most widely prescribed anti-inflammatory drugs. By acting through their cognate receptor, the glucocorticoid receptor (GR), GCs down-regulate the expression of pro-inflammatory genes, and up-regulate anti-inflammatory genes. Metabolic pathways have recently been identified as key parts of both the inflammatory activation and anti-inflammatory polarization of macrophages, immune cells responsible for acute inflammation and tissue repair. It is currently unknown whether GCs control macrophage metabolism, and if so, to what extent metabolic regulation by GCs confers anti-inflammatory activity. Using transcriptomic and metabolomic profiling of macrophages, we identified GC controlled pathways involved in metabolism, especially in mitochondrial function. Metabolic analyses revealed that GCs repress glycolysis in inflammatory myeloid cells and promote tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle flux, promoting succinate metabolism and preventing intracellular accumulation of succinate. Inhibition of ATP synthase attenuated GC induced transcriptional changes, likely through stalling of TCA cycle anaplerosis. We further identified a glycolytic regulatory transcription factor, HIF1α, as regulated by GCs, and as a key regulator of GC responsiveness during inflammatory challenge, further linking metabolism to GC action in macrophages.
Keywords: Glucocorticoids; Succinate; TCA Cycle; immunometabolism; macrophage