Crucial roles of XCR1-expressing dendritic cells and the XCR1-XCL1 chemokine axis in intestinal immune homeostasis

Abstract

Intestinal immune homeostasis requires dynamic crosstalk between innate and adaptive immune cells. Dendritic cells (DCs) exist as multiple phenotypically and functionally distinct sub-populations within tissues, where they initiate immune responses and promote homeostasis. In the gut, there exists a minor DC subset defined as CD103+ CD11b- that also expresses the chemokine receptor XCR1. In other tissues, XCR1+ DCs cross-present antigen and contribute to immunity against viruses and cancer, however the roles of XCR1+ DCs and XCR1 in the intestine are unknown. We showed that mice lacking XCR1+ DCs are specifically deficient in intraepithelial and lamina propria (LP) T cell populations, with remaining T cells exhibiting an atypical phenotype and being prone to death, and are also more susceptible to chemically-induced colitis. Mice deficient in either XCR1 or its ligand, XCL1, similarly possess diminished intestinal T cell populations, and an accumulation of XCR1+ DCs in the gut. Combined with transcriptome and surface marker expression analysis, these observations lead us to hypothesise that T cell-derived XCL1 facilitates intestinal XCR1+ DC activation and migration, and that XCR1+ DCs in turn provide support for T cell survival and function. Thus XCR1+ DCs and the XCR1/XCL1 chemokine axis have previously-unappreciated roles in intestinal immune homeostasis.