news

HIC1 protein may protect against intestinal disease

Scientists find molecular link between Vitamin A derivative and mouse intestinal health…

HIC1

New research shows that all-trans-retinoic acid (atRA), the active form of vitamin A, regulates immune system responses in the mouse intestine by controlling the expression of the protein HIC1 in cells known as innate lymphoid cells. These findings, which could suggest new ways to fight disease.

The intestinal immune system must strike a balance between fighting infection and maintaining tolerance to harmless or beneficial microbes and food particles. Previous research has shown that atRA, produced from dietary vitamin A by some intestinal cells, helps maintain this balance in mice by regulating the activity of innate lymphoid cells. However, the molecular details of this process have been unclear.

In the new study Dr Kyle Burrows of the University of British Columbia and colleagues focused on the protein HIC1, or “Hypermethylated in cancer 1,”so named because it was first identified in cancer cells; however, it also helps regulate gene expression in normal cells. The research team had previously shown that atRA influences HIC1 activity and that HIC1 helps maintain intestinal health in mice. Now, they have investigated the molecular details of HIC1’s role.

 

Reserve your FREE place

 


Are you looking to optimise antibody leads in your drug discovery? Register for this webinar to find out how!

30 July 2025 | 10:00 AM BST | FREE Webinar

Join this webinar to hear from Dr. Lei Guo as she shares how early insights into liability, PK, stability, and manufacturability can help you optimise antibody leads in early drug discovery – and mitigate downstream risks later in development.

What You’ll Learn:

  • How to assess key developability risks early
  • How in silico modelling and in vitro testing can be combined to predict CMC risks earlier in discovery stage
  • How micro-developability strategies are tailored for complex or novel formats

Don’t miss your chance to learn from real-world leaders

Register Now – It’s Free!

 

ILC3-intrinsic HIC1 is required for immunity to Citrobacter rodentium infection. Burrows K, et al. (2018)

The researchers deleted the HIC1 gene in certain innate lymphoid cells in the mouse intestine and found that this increased the susceptibility of the mice to infection with the bacterium Citrobacter rodentium. Further investigation revealed that the increased susceptibility was due to a reduction in production by the innate lymphoid cells of IL-22, a protein that plays a key role in the intestinal immune response.

“Vitamin A has been long known to play a central role in the balance between intestinal immune health and disease, but the precise molecular mechanisms of how it affected immune cells was unknown,” says Professor Colby Zaph from the Biomedicine Discovery Institute at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. “Identifying HIC1 provides a potential target to modulate intestinal inflammation,” said Prof Zaph, who led these studies.

These results suggest that HIC1 helps maintain intestinal health in mice by regulating the activity of innate lymphoid cells, with its own activity regulated by atRA. With further research, these findings could open up new strategies to protect against infection and intestinal imbalance, which can lead to conditions such as food allergy and irritable bowel syndrome.

The results are presented in PLOS Pathogens.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *