Loss of Interleukin-6 Influences Transcriptional Immune Signatures and Alters Bacterial Colonization in the Skin

Lerin R Luckett-Chastain; Catherine J King; William M McShan; Jenny R Gipson; Allison F Gillaspy; Randle M Gallucci

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2021.658980

Loss of Interleukin-6 Influences Transcriptional Immune Signatures and Alters Bacterial Colonization in the Skin

Front Microbiol. 2021 Jul 6:12:658980. doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.658980. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Lerin R Luckett-Chastain¹, Catherine J King¹, William M McShan¹, Jenny R Gipson², Allison F Gillaspy^{2

3}, Randle M Gallucci¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pharmaceutical Science, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, OK, United States.
² College of Medicine Core Facilities, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, OK, United States.
³ Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, OK, United States.

Abstract

The skin functions as a protective barrier to inhibit the entry of foreign pathogens, all the while hosting a diverse milieu of microorganisms. Over time, skin cells, immune cells, cytokines, and microbes interact to integrate the processes of maintaining the skin's physical and immune barrier. In the present study, the basal expression of two immunologically divergent mouse strains C57BL/6 and BALB/c, as well as a strain on the C57 background lacking IL-6, was characterized. Additionally, cutaneous antimicrobial gene expression profiles and skin bacterial microbiome were assessed between strains. Total RNA sequencing was performed on untreated C57BL/6 (control), BALB/c, and IL-6-deficient skin samples and found over 3,400 genes differentially modulated between strains. It was found that each strain modulated its own transcriptional "profile" associated with skin homeostasis and also influenced the overall bacterial colonization as indicated by the differential phyla present on each strain. Together, these data not only provide a comprehensive view of the transcriptional changes in homeostatic skin of different mouse strains but also highlight the possible influence of the strain differences (e.g., Th1/Th2 balance) as well as a role for IL-6 in overall skin immunity and resident microbial populations.

Keywords: RNA sequencing; T helper 1; T helper 2; antimicrobial peptides; interluekin-6; microbiome.

Abstract

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