SENP1 prevents steatohepatitis by suppressing RIPK1-driven apoptosis and inflammation

Activation of RIPK1-driven cell death and inflammation play important roles in the progression of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). However, the mechanism underlying RIPK1 activation in NASH remains unclear. Here we identified SENP1, a SUMO-specific protease, as a key endogenous inhibitor of RIPK1. SENP1 is progressively reduced in proportion to NASH severity in patients. Hepatocyte-specific SENP1-knockout mice develop spontaneous NASH-related phenotypes in a RIPK1 kinase-dependent manner. We demonstrate that SENP1 deficiency sensitizes cells to RIPK1 kinase-dependent apoptosis by promoting RIPK1 activation following TNFα stimulation. Mechanistically, SENP1 deSUMOylates RIPK1 in TNF-R1 signaling complex (TNF-RSC), keeping RIPK1 in check. Loss of SENP1 leads to SUMOylation of RIPK1, which re-orchestrates TNF-RSC and modulates the ubiquitination patterns and activity of RIPK1. Notably, genetic inhibition of RIPK1 effectively reverses disease progression in hepatocyte-specific SENP1-knockout male mice with high-fat-diet-induced nonalcoholic fatty liver. We propose that deSUMOylation of RIPK1 by SENP1 provides a pathophysiologically relevant cell death-restricting checkpoint that modulates RIPK1 activation in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.