IL-7Rα Expression Regulates Murine Dendritic Cell Sensitivity to Thymic Stromal Lymphopoietin

Thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) and IL-7 are related cytokines that mediate growth and differentiation events in the immune system. They signal through IL-7R alpha-containing receptors. Target cells of TSLP in Th2 responses include CD4 T cells and dendritic cells (DCs). Although it has been reported that expression of TSLP receptor (TSLPR) on CD4 T cells is required for OVA-induced lung inflammation, DCs have also been shown to be target cells of TSLP. In this study, we show that murine ex vivo splenic DCs are unresponsive to TSLP, as they fail to phosphorylate STAT5, but in vitro overnight culture, especially in presence of IL-4, renders DCs responsive to both TSLP and IL-7. This induced responsiveness is accompanied by dramatic upregulation of IL-7R alpha on DCs with little change in expression of TSLPR or of gamma(c). In splenic DCs, the induction of IL-7R alpha occurs mainly in CD8(-)DCs. In vivo, we found that IL-4 has a differential regulatory role on expression of IL-7R alpha depending on the cell type; IL-4 decreases IL-7R alpha expression on CD4 T cells whereas it upregulates the expression on DCs. Our results indicate that the induction of IL-7R alpha expression on DCs is critical for TSLP responsiveness and that IL-4 can upregulate IL-7R alpha on DCs.