Prosurvival IL-7–Stimulated Weak Strength of mTORC1-S6K Controls T Cell Memory via Transcriptional FOXO1–TCF1–Id3 and Metabolic AMPKα1–ULK1–ATG7 Pathways

Abstract CD8+ memory T (TM) cells play a critical role in immune defense against infection. Two common γ-chain family cytokines, IL-2 and IL-7, although triggering the same mTORC1–S6K pathway, distinctly induce effector T (TE) cells and TM cells, respectively, but the underlying mechanism(s) remains elusive. In this study, we generated IL-7R-/and AMPKα1-knockout (KO)/OTI mice. By using genetic and pharmaceutical tools, we demonstrate that IL-7 deficiency represses expression of FOXO1, TCF1, p-AMPKα1 (T172), and p-ULK1 (S555) and abolishes T cell memory differentiation in IL-7R KO T cells after Listeria monocytogenesis rLmOVA infection. IL-2– and IL-7–stimulated strong and weak S6K (IL-2/S6Kstrong and IL-7/S6Kweak) signals control short-lived IL-7R−CD62L−KLRG1+ TE and long-term IL-7R+CD62L+KLRG1− TM cell formations, respectively. To assess underlying molecular pathway(s), we performed flow cytometry, Western blotting, confocal microscopy, and Seahorse assay analyses by using the IL-7/S6Kweak–stimulated TM (IL-7/TM) and the control IL-2/S6Kstrong–stimulated TE (IL-2/TE) cells. We determine that the IL-7/S6Kweak signal activates transcriptional FOXO1, TCF1, and Id3 and metabolic p-AMPKα1, p-ULK1, and ATG7 molecules in IL-7/TM cells. IL-7/TM cells upregulate IL-7R and CD62L, promote mitochondria biogenesis and fatty acid oxidation metabolism, and show long-term cell survival and functional recall responses. Interestingly, AMPKα1 deficiency abolishes the AMPKα1 but maintains the FOXO1 pathway and induces a metabolic switch from fatty acid oxidation to glycolysis in AMPKα1 KO IL-7/TM cells, leading to loss of cell survival and recall responses. Taken together, our data demonstrate that IL-7–stimulated weak strength of mTORC1–S6K signaling controls T cell memory via activation of transcriptional FOXO1–TCF1–Id3 and metabolic AMPKα1–ULK1–ATG7 pathways. This (to our knowledge) novel finding provides a new mechanism for a distinct IL-2/IL-7 stimulation model in T cell memory and greatly impacts vaccine development.