The tick salivary protein sialostatin L inhibits the Th9-derived production of the asthma-promoting cytokine IL-9 and is effective in the prevention of experimental …

H Horka, V Staudt, M Klein, C Taube… - The Journal of …, 2012 - journals.aai.org
H Horka, V Staudt, M Klein, C Taube, S Reuter, N Dehzad, JF Andersen, J Kopecky…
The Journal of Immunology, 2012journals.aai.org
Ticks developed a multitude of different immune evasion strategies to obtain a blood meal.
Sialostatin L is an immunosuppressive cysteine protease inhibitor present in the saliva of the
hard tick Ixodes scapularis. In this study, we demonstrate that sialostatin L strongly inhibits
the production of IL-9 by Th9 cells. Because we could show recently that Th9-derived IL-9 is
essentially involved in the induction of asthma symptoms, sialostatin L was used for the
treatment of experimental asthma. Application of sialostatin L in a model of experimental …
Abstract
Ticks developed a multitude of different immune evasion strategies to obtain a blood meal. Sialostatin L is an immunosuppressive cysteine protease inhibitor present in the saliva of the hard tick Ixodes scapularis. In this study, we demonstrate that sialostatin L strongly inhibits the production of IL-9 by Th9 cells. Because we could show recently that Th9-derived IL-9 is essentially involved in the induction of asthma symptoms, sialostatin L was used for the treatment of experimental asthma. Application of sialostatin L in a model of experimental asthma almost completely abrogated airway hyperresponsiveness and eosinophilia. Our data suggest that sialostatin L can prevent experimental asthma, most likely by inhibiting the IL-9 production of Th9 cells. Thus, alternative to IL-9 neutralization sialostatin L provides the basis for the development of innovative therapeutic strategies to treat asthma.
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