PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT The nuclear receptor RORγt directs the differentiation of T cells that have critical roles in multiple autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Pharmacologic targeting of RORγt is hence being developed to treat diseases such as psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and inflammatory bowel disease that are thought to be mediated in large part by Th17 cells and related cells that produce IL-17 cytokines. However, RORγt has multiple other functions in diverse cell types, including mediating survival of thymocytes and regulating the development of lymphoid tissue inducer (LTi) cells, that guide the formation of secondary and tertiary lymphoid tissues, and of type 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3) that protect epithelial barriers. In addition, RORγ, a closely related isoform encoded by the same gene, has metabolic functions in multiple tissues, including liver and adipocytes. How RORγ and RORγt function in different cell types to direct distinct transcriptional and functional programs is not understood. The transcriptional networks regulated by RORγt and multiple other transcription factors have been studied in Th17 cells polarized in vitro with combinations of cytokines, but how RORγ/γt functions in Th17 cells and other cell types in vivo is not yet known. We have used a proteomics approach to characterize macromolecular complexes that govern RORγ/γt functions in different cell types and identified DDX5, a DEAD- box RNA helicase, as associated with RORγt in Th17 cells. In mice deficient for DDX5 in T cells, expression of multiple RORγt target genes is attenuated and the animals are resistant to Th17 cell-mediated inflammatory disease. We also found the long noncoding (lnc) RNA Rmrp associated with DDX5 and with RORγt, both in Th17 cells and when all three components were synthesized in vitro. Mutations in Rmrp result in cartilage-hair hypoplasia (CHH), a recessive human genetic disease characterized by abnormal bone growth, immune deficiency and neuronal dysplasia in the intestine. Expression of wild-type, but not a CHH mutant, Rmrp promoted Th17 cell differentiation in a DDX5-dependent manner, indicating that this is a rare lncRNA that functions in trans. Our results suggest that Rmrp binding to DDX5 promotes the interaction of DDX5 with RORγt and coactivation of RORγt target genes. We propose in Specific Aim 1 to identify gene targets whose expression is dependent on DDX5, Rmrp, and RORγt, using genome-wide transcriptomics, chromatin accessibility, and chromatin occupancy studies with in vitro polarized or in vivo generated Th17 cells from wild type and mutant animals. In Specific Aim 2, we will determine, using biochemical approaches, how these molecules interact with each other and whether this interaction is restricted to Th17 cells or is present in other RORγ/γt-dependent cells. In Specific Aim 3, we will characterize the influence of the interactions in Th17 cell- mediated inflammation, ILC3-dependent barrier protection, and development of thymocytes and lymphoid tissues. Our results will provide a better understanding of the functions of RORγt, which may facilitate design of more specific therapeutics for autoimmune disease and for immune deficiency in CHH patients.

PROJECT NARRATIVE This is a proposal to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms for regulating immune cell types that contribute to autoimmune diseases such as Crohn's disease, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and multiple sclerosis. The central molecule that regulates these cells can be targeted therapeutically, but since it is also important for the development of the immune system and for the body's energy balance, such therapy may also have detrimental consequences. Our studies, based on recent findings of cell type-specific partners for this molecule, may permit its selective targeting in cells involved in autoimmunity, thus sparing other functions.