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RNA editing enzyme APOBEC3A promotes pro-inflammatory M1 macrophage polarization

  • Emad Y. Alqassim
  • , Shraddha Sharma
  • , A. N.M.Nazmul H. Khan
  • , Tiffany R. Emmons
  • , Eduardo Cortes Gomez
  • , Abdulrahman Alahmari
  • , Kelly L. Singel
  • , Jaron Mark
  • , Bruce A. Davidson
  • , A. J. Robert McGray
  • , Qian Liu
  • , Brian D. Lichty
  • , Kirsten B. Moysich
  • , Jianmin Wang
  • , Kunle Odunsi
  • , Brahm H. Segal
  • , Bora E. Baysal
  • Roswell Park Cancer Institute
  • Jazan University
  • Translate Bio
  • Prince Sattam Bin Abdulaziz University
  • National Institutes of Health
  • START Center for Cancer Care
  • McMaster University
  • SUNY Buffalo

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

44 Scopus citations

Abstract

Pro-inflammatory M1 macrophage polarization is associated with microbicidal and antitumor responses. We recently described APOBEC3A-mediated cytosine-to-uracil (C > U) RNA editing during M1 polarization. However, the functional significance of this editing is unknown. Here we find that APOBEC3A-mediated cellular RNA editing can also be induced by influenza or Maraba virus infections in normal human macrophages, and by interferons in tumor-associated macrophages. Gene knockdown and RNA_Seq analyses show that APOBEC3A mediates C>U RNA editing of 209 exonic/UTR sites in 203 genes during M1 polarization. The highest level of nonsynonymous RNA editing alters a highly-conserved amino acid in THOC5, which encodes a nuclear mRNA export protein implicated in M-CSF-driven macrophage differentiation. Knockdown of APOBEC3A reduces IL6, IL23A and IL12B gene expression, CD86 surface protein expression, and TNF-α, IL-1β and IL-6 cytokine secretion, and increases glycolysis. These results show a key role of APOBEC3A cytidine deaminase in transcriptomic and functional polarization of M1 macrophages.

Original languageEnglish
Article number102
JournalCommunications Biology
Volume4
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 2021

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