Lung group 2 innate lymphoid cells differentially depend on local IL-7 for their distribution, activation, and maintenance in innate and adaptive immunity-mediated airway inflammation

Interleukin-7 (IL-7) is a cytokine critical for the development and maintenance of group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s). ILC2s are resident in peripheral tissues such as the intestine and lung. However, whether IL-7 produced in the lung plays a role in the maintenance and function of lung ILC2s during airway inflammation remains unknown. IL-7 was expressed in bronchoalveolar epithelial cells and lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs). To investigate the role of local IL-7 in lung ILC2s, we generated two types of IL-7 conditional knockout (IL-7cKO) mice: Sftpc-Cre (SPC-Cre) IL-7cKO mice specific for bronchial epithelial cells and type 2 alveolar epithelial cells and Lyve1-Cre IL-7cKO mice specific for LECs. In steady state, ILC2s were located near airway epithelia, although lung ILC2s were unchanged in the two lines of IL-7cKO mice. In papain-induced airway inflammation dependent on innate immunity, lung ILC2s localized near bronchia via CCR4 expression, and eosinophil infiltration and type 2 cytokine production were reduced in SPC-Cre IL-7cKO mice. In contrast, in house dust mite (HDM)-induced airway inflammation dependent on adaptive immunity, lung ILC2s localized near lymphatic vessels via their CCR2 expression 2 weeks after the last challenge. Furthermore, lung ILC2s were decreased in Lyve1-Cre IL-7cKO mice in the HDM-induced inflammation because of decreased cell survival and proliferation. Finally, administration of anti-IL-7 antibody attenuated papain-induced inflammation by suppressing the activation of ILC2s. Thus, this study demonstrates that IL-7 produced by bronchoalveolar epithelial cells and LECs differentially controls the activation and maintenance of lung ILC2s, where they are localized in airway inflammation.