Eosinophils: changing perspectives in health and disease

Rosenberg, Helene F.; Dyer, Kimberly D; Foster, Paul S.

doi:10.1038/nri3341

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Eosinophils: changing perspectives in health and disease

review-article

Author(s): Helene F. Rosenberg ¹ ^, , Kimberly D. Dyer ¹ , Paul S. Foster ²

Publication date (Electronic): 16 November 2012

Journal: Nature Reviews. Immunology

Publisher: Nature Publishing Group UK

Keywords: Granulocytes, Innate immunity, Infection, Allergy

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Key Points

Eosinophils have been traditionally perceived as terminally differentiated cytotoxic effector cells. Recent studies have provided a more sophisticated understanding of eosinophil effector functions and a more nuanced view of their contributions to the pathogenesis of various diseases, including asthma and respiratory allergies, eosinophilic gastrointestinal diseases, hypereosinophilic syndromes and parasitic infection.
Eosinophils are granulocytes that develop in the bone marrow from pluripotent progenitors in response to cytokines, such as interleukin-5 (IL-5), IL-3 and granulocyte–macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). Mature eosinophils are released into the peripheral blood and enter tissues in response to cooperative signalling between IL-5 and eotaxin family chemokines.
Eosinophils in peripheral blood and tissues are uniquely identified by their bilobed nuclei, their large specific granules that store cytokines, cationic proteins and enzymes, and their expression of the IL-5 receptor and CC-chemokine receptor 3 (CCR3). In addition, the receptors sialic acid-binding immunoglobulin-like lectin 8 (SIGLEC-8) and SIGLEC-F are expressed by human and mouse eosinophils, respectively.
IL-5 has a central and profound role in all aspects of eosinophil development, activation and survival. IL-5 is produced by T helper 2 (T _H2) cells, and more recently the contributions of the epithelium-derived innate cytokines thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), IL-25 and IL-33 in promoting eosinophilia via the induction of IL-5 have also been recognized.
Although eosinophil responses are influenced by cytokines produced by T cells, eosinophils in turn modulate the functions of B and T cells. Eosinophils also communicate with a range of innate immune cells (such as mast cells, dendritic cells, macrophages and neutrophils). Eosinophils serve to bridge innate and adaptive immunity by regulating the production of chemoattractants and cytokines (including CC-chemokine ligand 17 (CCL17), CCL22, a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) and IL-6) and via antigen presentation.
Both successful and unsuccessful attempts to target eosinophils have yielded remarkable insights into their contribution to disease pathogenesis. Many eosinophil-associated inflammatory conditions have been shown to be heterogeneous in nature. As such, successful therapeutic strategies will depend on the correlation of disease activity with dysregulated eosinophil function as well as the identification of the crucial molecules that regulate eosinophil accumulation in the affected tissues.

Supplementary information

The online version of this article (doi:10.1038/nri3341) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Abstract

This Review describes the unique biology of the eosinophil. The authors explain how eosinophils interact with other leukocyte populations to promote protective immunity following infection. They also discuss the pathological roles of eosinophils in allergic-type diseases, such as asthma and the hypereosinophilic syndromes.

Supplementary information

The online version of this article (doi:10.1038/nri3341) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Abstract

Eosinophils have been traditionally perceived as terminally differentiated cytotoxic effector cells. Recent studies have profoundly altered this simplistic view of eosinophils and their function. New insights into the molecular pathways that control the development, trafficking and degranulation of eosinophils have improved our understanding of the immunomodulatory functions of these cells and their roles in promoting homeostasis. Likewise, recent developments have generated a more sophisticated view of how eosinophils contribute to the pathogenesis of different diseases, including asthma and primary hypereosinophilic syndromes, and have also provided us with a more complete appreciation of the activities of these cells during parasitic infection.

Supplementary information

The online version of this article (doi:10.1038/nri3341) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Most cited references 150

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Some patients with severe asthma have recurrent asthma exacerbations associated with eosinophilic airway inflammation. Early studies suggest that inhibition of eosinophilic airway inflammation with mepolizumab-a monoclonal antibody against interleukin 5-is associated with a reduced risk of exacerbations. We aimed to establish efficacy, safety, and patient characteristics associated with the response to mepolizumab. We undertook a multicentre, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial at 81 centres in 13 countries between Nov 9, 2009, and Dec 5, 2011. Eligible patients were aged 12-74 years, had a history of recurrent severe asthma exacerbations, and had signs of eosinophilic inflammation. They were randomly assigned (in a 1:1:1:1 ratio) to receive one of three doses of intravenous mepolizumab (75 mg, 250 mg, or 750 mg) or matched placebo (100 mL 0·9% NaCl) with a central telephone-based system and computer-generated randomly permuted block schedule stratified by whether treatment with oral corticosteroids was required. Patients received 13 infusions at 4-week intervals. The primary outcome was the rate of clinically significant asthma exacerbations, which were defined as validated episodes of acute asthma requiring treatment with oral corticosteroids, admission, or a visit to an emergency department. Patients, clinicians, and data analysts were masked to treatment assignment. Analyses were by intention to treat. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT01000506. 621 patients were randomised: 159 were assigned to placebo, 154 to 75 mg mepolizumab, 152 to 250 mg mepolizumab, and 156 to 750 mg mepolizumab. 776 exacerbations were deemed to be clinically significant. The rate of clinically significant exacerbations was 2·40 per patient per year in the placebo group, 1·24 in the 75 mg mepolizumab group (48% reduction, 95% CI 31-61%; p<0·0001), 1·46 in the 250 mg mepolizumab group (39% reduction, 19-54%; p=0·0005), and 1·15 in the 750 mg mepolizumab group (52% reduction, 36-64%; p<0·0001). Three patients died during the study, but the deaths were not deemed to be related to treatment. Mepolizumab is an effective and well tolerated treatment that reduces the risk of asthma exacerbations in patients with severe eosinophilic asthma. GlaxoSmithKline. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) are emerging as a family of effectors and regulators of innate immunity and tissue remodeling. Interleukin 22 (IL-22)- and IL-17-producing ILCs, which depend on the transcription factor RORγt, express CD127 (IL-7 receptor α-chain) and the natural killer cell marker CD161. Here we describe another lineage-negative CD127(+)CD161(+) ILC population found in humans that expressed the chemoattractant receptor CRTH2. These cells responded in vitro to IL-2 plus IL-25 and IL-33 by producing IL-13. CRTH2(+) ILCs were present in fetal and adult lung and gut. In fetal gut, these cells expressed IL-13 but not IL-17 or IL-22. There was enrichment for CRTH2(+) ILCs in nasal polyps of chronic rhinosinusitis, a typical type 2 inflammatory disease. Our data identify a unique type of human ILC that provides an innate source of T helper type 2 (T(H)2) cytokines.

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Lebrikizumab treatment in adults with asthma.

Jonathan Corren, Robert Lemanske, Nicola Hanania … (2011)

Many patients with asthma have uncontrolled disease despite treatment with inhaled glucocorticoids. One potential cause of the variability in response to treatment is heterogeneity in the role of interleukin-13 expression in the clinical asthma phenotype. We hypothesized that anti-interleukin-13 therapy would benefit patients with asthma who had a pretreatment profile consistent with interleukin-13 activity. We conducted a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of lebrikizumab, a monoclonal antibody to interleukin-13, in 219 adults who had asthma that was inadequately controlled despite inhaled glucocorticoid therapy. The primary efficacy outcome was the relative change in prebronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV(1)) from baseline to week 12. Among the secondary outcomes was the rate of asthma exacerbations through 24 weeks. Patient subgroups were prespecified according to baseline type 2 helper T-cell (Th2) status (assessed on the basis of total IgE level and blood eosinophil count) and serum periostin level. At baseline, patients had a mean FEV(1) that was 65% of the predicted value and were taking a mean dose of inhaled glucocorticoids of 580 μg per day; 80% were also taking a long-acting beta-agonist. At week 12, the mean increase in FEV(1) was 5.5 percentage points higher in the lebrikizumab group than in the placebo group (P = 0.02). Among patients in the high-periostin subgroup, the increase from baseline FEV(1) was 8.2 percentage points higher in the lebrikizumab group than in the placebo group (P = 0.03). Among patients in the low-periostin subgroup, the increase from baseline FEV(1) was 1.6 percentage points higher in the lebrikizumab group than in the placebo group (P = 0.61). Musculoskeletal side effects were more common with lebrikizumab than with placebo (13.2% vs. 5.4%, P = 0.045). Lebrikizumab treatment was associated with improved lung function. Patients with high pretreatment levels of serum periostin had greater improvement in lung function with lebrikizumab than did patients with low periostin levels. (Funded by Genentech; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00930163 .).

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Author and article information

Contributors

Helene F. Rosenberg: hrosenberg@niaid.nih.gov

Bio :

Helene F. Rosenberg received a combined M.D. and Ph.D. degree from Cornell University Medical College, New York, USA, and the Rockefeller University, New York, USA. She is currently a senior investigator and the Section Chief for the Inflammation Immunobiology Section of the Laboratory of Allergic Diseases, US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), National Institutes of Health (NIH), Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Her research programme includes a focus on eosinophil biology as part of a larger programme on the inflammatory responses to and novel immunomodulatory therapies for severe respiratory virus infection.

Kimberly D. Dyer:

Bio :

Kimberly D. Dyer received her Ph.D. from Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA. She is currently a staff scientist in the Laboratory of Allergic Diseases at the NIAID, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Her research focuses on the differentiation and biology of eosinophils with a special emphasis on in vitro culture systems.

Paul S. Foster:

Bio :

Paul S. Foster received his Ph.D. and Doctorate of Science from the Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. He is currently the Director of the Priority Research Centre for Asthma and Respiratory Disease, University of Newcastle, Australia, and holds the Chair of Immunology in the School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, Faculty of Health, University of Newcastle, Australia. His research focuses on understanding the molecular and cellular basis of asthma, allergy and infectious disease of the lung. He is particularly interested in translational approaches directed towards the development of novel anti-inflammatory therapies.

Journal

Journal ID (nlm-ta): Nat Rev Immunol

Journal ID (iso-abbrev): Nat. Rev. Immunol

Title: Nature Reviews. Immunology

Publisher: Nature Publishing Group UK (London )

ISSN (Print): 1474-1733

ISSN (Electronic): 1474-1741

Publication date (Electronic): 16 November 2012

Publication date (Print): 2013

Volume: 13

Issue: 1

Pages: 9-22

Affiliations

[1 ]GRID grid.419681.3, ISNI 0000 0001 2164 9667, Laboratory of Allergic Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, ; Bethesda, 20892 Maryland USA

[2 ]GRID grid.266842.c, ISNI 0000 0000 8831 109X, Priority Research Centre for Asthma and Respiratory Diseases, Kookaburra Way, Hunter Medical Research Institute and School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, Faculty of Health, University of Newcastle, ; Newcastle, 2300 NSW Australia

Article

Publisher ID: BFnri3341

DOI: 10.1038/nri3341

PMC ID: 4357492

PubMed ID: 23154224

SO-VID: 4b109faa-941c-40a4-b6a4-e3ee41dfe14a

License:

This article is made available via the PMC Open Access Subset for unrestricted research re-use and secondary analysis in any form or by any means with acknowledgement of the original source. These permissions are granted for the duration of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaration of COVID-19 as a global pandemic.