KLF10 Deficiency in CD4+ T Cells Triggers Obesity, Insulin Resistance, and Fatty Liver.
Wara AK, Wang S, Wu C, Fang F, Haemmig S, Weber BN, Aydogan CO, Tesmenitsky Y, Aliakbarian H, Hawse JR, Subramaniam M, Zhao L, Sage PT, Tavakkoli A, Garza A, Lynch L, Banks AS, Feinberg MW.
December 2020
Abstract
CD4+ T cells regulate inflammation and metabolism in obesity. An imbalance of CD4+ T regulatory cells (Tregs) is critical in the development of insulin resistance and diabetes. Although cytokine control of this process is well understood, transcriptional regulation is not. KLF10, a member of the Kruppel-like transcription factor family, is an emerging regulator of immune cell function. We generated CD4+-T-cell-specific KLF10 knockout (TKO) mice and identified a predisposition to obesity, insulin resistance, and fatty liver due to defects of CD4+ Treg mobilization to liver and adipose tissue depots and decreased transforming growth factor β3 (TGF-β3) release in vitro and in vivo. Adoptive transfer of wild-type CD4+ Tregs fully rescued obesity, insulin resistance, and fatty liver. Mechanistically, TKO Tregs exhibit reduced mitochondrial respiration and glycolysis, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)-Akt-mTOR signaling, and consequently impaired chemotactic properties. Collectively, our study identifies CD4+ T cell KLF10 as an essential regulator of obesity and insulin resistance by altering Treg metabolism and mobilization.