Type I Interferon Activates PD-1 Expression through Activation of the STAT1-IRF2 Pathway in Myeloid Cells

PD-1 (Programmed cell death protein 1) regulates the metabolic reprogramming of myeloid-derived suppressor cells and myeloid cell differentiation, as well as the type I interferon (IFN-I) signaling pathway in myeloid cells in the tumor microenvironment. PD-1, therefore, is a key inhibitory receptor in myeloid cells. However, the regulation of PD-1 expression in myeloid cells is unknown. We report that the expression level of PDCD1, the gene that encodes the PD-1 protein, is positively correlated with the levels of IFNB1 and IFNAR1 in myeloid cells in human colorectal cancer. Treatment of mouse myeloid cell lines with recombinant IFNβ protein elevated PD-1 expression in myeloid cells in vitro. Knocking out IFNAR1, the gene that encodes the IFN-I-specific receptor, diminished the inductive effect of IFNβ on PD-1 expression in myeloid cells in vitro. Treatment of tumor-bearing mice with a lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated IFNβ-encoding plasmid (IFNBCOL01) increased IFNβ expression, resulting in elevated PD-1 expression in tumor-infiltrating myeloid cells. At the molecular level, we determined that IFNβ activates STAT1 (signal transducer and activator of transcription 1) and IRFs (interferon regulatory factors) in myeloid cells. Analysis of the cd279 promoter identified IRF2-binding consensus sequence elements. ChIP (chromatin immunoprecipitation) analysis determined that the pSTAT1 directly binds to the irf2 promoter and that IRF2 directly binds to the cd279 promoter in myeloid cells in vitro and in vivo. In colon cancer patients, the expression levels of STAT1, IRF2 and PDCD1 are positively correlated in tumor-infiltrating myeloid cells. Our findings determine that IFNβ activates PD-1 expression at least in part by an autocrine mechanism via the stimulation of the pSTAT1-IRF2 axis in myeloid cells.