[Abstract unavailable

Innate immune cells can develop long-term memory after stimulation by microbial products during infections or vaccinations. Here, we report that metabolic signals can induce trained immunity. Pharmacological and genetic experiments reveal that activation of the cholesterol synthesis pathway, but not the synthesis of cholesterol itself, is essential for training of myeloid cells. Rather, the metabolite mevalonate is the mediator of training via activation of IGF1-R and mTOR and subsequent histone modifications in inflammatory pathways. Statins, which block mevalonate generation, prevent trained immunity induction. Furthermore, monocytes of patients with hyper immunoglobulin D syndrome (HIDS), who are mevalonate kinase deficient and accumulate mevalonate, have a constitutive trained immunity phenotype at both immunological and epigenetic levels, which could explain the attacks of sterile inflammation that these patients experience. Unraveling the role of mevalonate in trained immunity contributes to our understanding of the pathophysiology of HIDS and identifies novel therapeutic targets for clinical conditions with excessive activation of trained immunity.

Summary Differences in susceptibility to immune-mediated diseases are determined by variability in immune responses. In three studies within the Human Functional Genomics Project we assessed the effect of environmental and non-genetic host factors, of the genetic make-up of the host, and of the intestinal microbiome, on the cytokine responses in humans. We analyzed the association of these factors with circulating mediators and with six cytokines after stimulation with 19 bacterial, fungal, viral and non-microbial metabolic stimuli in 534 healthy subjects. In this first study we show a strong impact of non-genetic host factors (e.g. age and gender) on cytokine production and circulating mediators. Additionally, annual seasonality is found to be an important environmental factor influencing cytokine production. Alpha-1-antitrypsin concentrations partially mediate the seasonality of cytokine responses, whereas the effect of vitamin D levels is limited. The complete dataset has been made publicly available as a comprehensive resource for future studies.

To search for sequence variants conferring risk of nonmedullary thyroid cancer, we focused our analysis on 22 SNPs with a P < 5 × 10−8 in a genome-wide association study on levels of thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) in 27,758 Icelanders. Of those, rs965513 has previously been shown to associate with thyroid cancer. The remaining 21 SNPs were genotyped in 561 Icelandic individuals with thyroid cancer (cases) and up to 40,013 controls. Variants suggestively associated with thyroid cancer (P < 0.05) were genotyped in an additional 595 non-Icelandic cases and 2,604 controls. After combining the results, three variants were shown to associate with thyroid cancer: rs966423 on 2q35 (OR = 1.34; Pcombined = 1.3 × 10−9), rs2439302 on 8p12 (OR = 1.36; Pcombined = 2.0 × 10−9) and rs116909374 on 14q13.3 (OR = 2.09; Pcombined = 4.6 × 10−11), a region previously reported to contain an uncorrelated variant conferring risk of thyroid cancer. A strong association (P = 9.1 × 10−91) was observed between rs2439302 on 8p12 and expression of NRG1, which encodes the signaling protein neuregulin 1, in blood.

Thyroid hormone is essential for normal metabolism and development, and overt abnormalities in thyroid function lead to common endocrine disorders affecting approximately 10% of individuals over their life span. In addition, even mild alterations in thyroid function are associated with weight changes, atrial fibrillation, osteoporosis, and psychiatric disorders. To identify novel variants underlying thyroid function, we performed a large meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies for serum levels of the highly heritable thyroid function markers TSH and FT4, in up to 26,420 and 17,520 euthyroid subjects, respectively. Here we report 26 independent associations, including several novel loci for TSH (PDE10A, VEGFA, IGFBP5, NFIA, SOX9, PRDM11, FGF7, INSR, ABO, MIR1179, NRG1, MBIP, ITPK1, SASH1, GLIS3) and FT4 (LHX3, FOXE1, AADAT, NETO1/FBXO15, LPCAT2/CAPNS2). Notably, only limited overlap was detected between TSH and FT4 associated signals, in spite of the feedback regulation of their circulating levels by the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis. Five of the reported loci (PDE8B, PDE10A, MAF/LOC440389, NETO1/FBXO15, and LPCAT2/CAPNS2) show strong gender-specific differences, which offer clues for the known sexual dimorphism in thyroid function and related pathologies. Importantly, the TSH-associated loci contribute not only to variation within the normal range, but also to TSH values outside the reference range, suggesting that they may be involved in thyroid dysfunction. Overall, our findings explain, respectively, 5.64% and 2.30% of total TSH and FT4 trait variance, and they improve the current knowledge of the regulation of hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis function and the consequences of genetic variation for hypo- or hyperthyroidism.

In order to adapt to the reduced availability of nutrients and oxygen in the tumor microenvironment and the increased requirements of energy and building blocks necessary for maintaining their high proliferation rate, malignant cells undergo metabolic changes that result in an increased production of lactate, nitric oxide, reactive oxygen species, prostaglandins and other byproducts of arachidonic acid metabolism that influence both the composition of the inflammatory microenvironment and the function of the tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs). In response to cues present in the TME, among which products of altered tumor cell metabolism, TAMs are also required to reprogram their metabolism, with activation of glycolysis, fatty acid synthesis and altered nitrogen cycle metabolism. These changes result in functional reprogramming of TAMs which includes changes in the production of cytokines and angiogenetic factors, and contribute to the tumor progression and metastasis. Understanding the metabolic changes governing the intricate relationship between the tumor cells and the TAMs represents an essential step towards developing novel therapeutic approaches targeting the metabolic reprogramming of the immune cells to potentiate their tumoricidal potential and to circumvent therapy resistance.

The great majority of thyroid cancers are of the non-medullary type. Here we report findings from a genome-wide association study of non-medullary thyroid cancer, including in total 3,001 patients and 287,550 controls from five study groups of European descent. Our results yield five novel loci (all with Pcombined<3 × 10−8): 1q42.2 (rs12129938 in PCNXL2), 3q26.2 (rs6793295 a missense mutation in LRCC34 near TERC), 5q22.1 (rs73227498 between NREP and EPB41L4A), 10q24.33 (rs7902587 near OBFC1), and two independently associated variants at 15q22.33 (rs2289261 and rs56062135; both in SMAD3). We also confirm recently published association results from a Chinese study of a variant on 5p15.33 (rs2736100 near the TERT gene) and present a stronger association result for a moderately correlated variant (rs10069690; OR=1.20, P=3.2 × 10−7) based on our study of individuals of European ancestry. In combination, these results raise several opportunities for future studies of the pathogenesis of thyroid cancer.

Thyroid dysfunction is an important public health problem, which affects 10% of the general population and increases the risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Many aspects of thyroid hormone regulation have only partly been elucidated, including its transport, metabolism, and genetic determinants. Here we report a large meta-analysis of genome-wide association studies for thyroid function and dysfunction, testing 8 million genetic variants in up to 72,167 individuals. One-hundred-and-nine independent genetic variants are associated with these traits. A genetic risk score, calculated to assess their combined effects on clinical end points, shows significant associations with increased risk of both overt (Graves’ disease) and subclinical thyroid disease, as well as clinical complications. By functional follow-up on selected signals, we identify a novel thyroid hormone transporter (SLC17A4) and a metabolizing enzyme (AADAT). Together, these results provide new knowledge about thyroid hormone physiology and disease, opening new possibilities for therapeutic targets.