PMID: 29109267 , Related PDB id: 5UR7

Authors:

Getschman AE, Imai Y, Larsen O, Peterson FC, Wu X, Rosenkilde MM, Hwang ST, Volkman BF

Title:

Protein engineering of the chemokine CCL20 prevents psoriasiform dermatitis in an IL-23-dependent murine model.

Journal:

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2017 Nov 6. pii: 201704958. doi:, 10.1073/pnas.1704958114.

Abstract:

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease characterized by the infiltration of T cell and other immune cells to the skin in response to injury or autoantigens. Conventional, as well as unconventional, gammadelta T cells are recruited to the dermis and epidermis by CCL20 and other chemokines. Together with its receptor CCR6, CCL20 plays a critical role in the development of psoriasiform dermatitis in mouse models. We screened a panel of CCL20 variants designed to form dimers stabilized by intermolecular disulfide bonds. A single-atom substitution yielded a CCL20 variant (CCL20 S64C) that acted as a partial agonist for the chemokine receptor CCR6. CCL20 S64C bound CCR6 and induced intracellular calcium release, consistent with G-protein activation, but exhibited minimal chemotactic activity. Instead, CCL20 S64C inhibited CCR6-mediated T cell migration with nominal impact on other chemokine receptor signaling. When given in an IL-23-dependent mouse model for psoriasis, CCL20 S64C prevented psoriatic inflammation and the up-regulation of IL-17A and IL-22. Our results validate CCR6 as a tractable therapeutic target for psoriasis and demonstrate the value of CCL20 S64C as a lead compound.