Pro-inflammatory Cytokines Impair Vitamin D-induced Host Defense in Cultured Airway Epithelial Cells

Vitamin D is a regulator of host defense against infections and induces expression of the antimicrobial peptide hCAP18/LL-37. Vitamin D deficiency is associated with chronic inflammatory lung diseases and respiratory infections. However, it is incompletely understood if and how (chronic) airway inflammation affects vitamin D metabolism and action. We hypothesized that long-term exposure of primary bronchial epithelial cells (PBEC) to pro-inflammatory cytokines alters their vitamin D metabolism, antibacterial activity and expression of hCAP18/LL-37. To investigate this, PBEC were differentiated at the air-liquid interphase for 14 days in presence of the pro-inflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-1β (TNF-α/IL-1β), and subsequently exposed to vitamin D (inactive 25(OH)D3 and active 1,25(OH)2D3). Expression of hCAP18/LL-37, vitamin D receptor (VDR) and enzymes involved in vitamin D metabolism (CYP24A1 and CYP27B1) was determined using qPCR, Western blot and immunofluorescence staining. Furthermore, vitamin D-mediated antibacterial activity was assessed using non-typeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi). We found that TNF-α/IL-1β treatment reduced vitamin D-induced expression of hCAP18/LL-37 and killing of NTHi. In addition, CYP24A1 (a vitamin D-degrading enzyme) was increased by TNF-α/IL-1β, whereas CYP27B1 (that converts 25(OH)D3 to its active form) and VDR expression remained unaffected. Furthermore, we demonstrated that the TNF-α/IL-1β-mediated induction of CYP24A1 was at least in part mediated by the transcription factor specific protein 1 (Sp1) and the EGFR-MAPK-pathway. These findings indicate that TNF-α/IL-1β decreases vitamin D-mediated antibacterial activity and hCAP18/LL-37 expression via induction of CYP24A1, and suggests that chronic inflammation impairs protective responses induced by vitamin D.