Production of amphiregulin (Areg) by regulatory T (Treg) cells promotes repair after acute tissue injury. Here, we examined the function of Treg cells in non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a setting of chronic liver injury. Areg-producing Treg cells were enriched in the livers of mice and humans with NASH. Deletion of Areg in Treg cells, but not in myeloid cells, reduced NASH-induced liver fibrosis. Chronic liver damage induced transcriptional changes associated with Treg cell activation. Mechanistically, Treg cell-derived Areg activated pro-fibrotic transcriptional programs in hepatic stellate cells via epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling. Deletion of Areg in Treg cells protected mice from NASH-dependent glucose intolerance, which also was dependent on EGFR signaling on hepatic stellate cells. Areg from Treg cells promoted hepatocyte gluconeogenesis through hepatocyte detection of hepatic stellate cell-derived interleukin-6. Our findings reveal a maladaptive role for Treg cell-mediated tissue repair functions in chronic liver disease and link liver damage to NASH-dependent glucose intolerance.
Keywords: NASH; Tregs; insulin resistance; liver fibrosis; non-alcoholic steatohepatitis; regulatory T cells.
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