The role of NF-κB and Smad3 in TGF-β-mediated Foxp3 expression

The transcription factor Foxp3 is essential for the development of functional, natural Treg (nTreg), which plays a prominent role in self-tolerance. Suppressive Foxp3(+) Treg cells can be generated from naive T cells ex vivo, following TCR and TGF-beta 1 stimulations. However, the molecular contributions from the different arms of these pathways leading to Foxp3 expression are not fully understood. TGF-beta 1-activated Smad3 plays a major role in the expression of Foxp3, since TGF-beta 1-induced-Treg generation from Smad3(-/-) mice is markedly reduced and abolished by inactivating Smad2. In the TCR pathway, deletion of Bcl10, which activates NF-kappa B, markedly reduces both IL-2 and Foxp3 production. However, partial rescue of Foxp3 expression occurs on addition of exogenous IL-2. TGF-beta 1 significantly attenuates NF-kappa B binding to the Foxp3 promoter, while inducing Foxp3 expression. Furthermore, deletion of p50, a NF-kappa B subunit, results in increased Foxp3 expression despite a decline in the IL-2 production. We posit several TCR-NF-kappa B pathways, some increasing (Bcl10-IL-2-Foxp3) while others decreasing (p50-Foxp3) Foxp3 expression, with the former predominating. A better understanding of Foxp3 regulation could be useful in dissecting the cause of Treg dysfunction in several autoimmune diseases and for generating more potent TGF-beta 1-induced-Treg cells for therapeutic purposes.