IL-6 controls susceptibility to helminth infection by impeding Th2 responsiveness and altering the Treg phenotype in vivo

IL-6 plays a pivotal role in favoring T-cell commitment toward a Th17 cell rather than Treg-cell phenotype, as established through in vitro model systems. We predicted that in the absence of IL-6, mice infected with the gastrointestinal helminth Heligmosomoides polygyrus would show reduced Th17-cell responses, but also enhanced Treg-cell activity and consequently greater susceptibility. Surprisingly, worm expulsion was markedly potentiated in IL-6-deficient mice, with significantly stronger adaptive Th2 responses in both IL-6(-/-) mice and BALB/c recipients of neutralizing anti-IL-6 monoclonal Ab. Although IL-6-deficient mice showed lower steady-state Th17-cell levels, IL-6-independent Th17-cell responses occurred during in vivo infection. We excluded the Th17 response as a factor in protection, as Ab neutralization did not modify immunity to H. polygyrus infection in BALB/c mice. Resistance did correlate with significant changes to the associated Treg-cell phenotype however, as IL-6-deficient mice displayed reduced expression of Foxp3, Helios, and GATA-3, and enhanced production of cytokines within the Treg-cell population. Administration of an anti-IL-2:IL-2 complex boosted Treg-cell proportions in vivo, reduced adaptive Th2 responses to WT levels, and fully restored susceptibility to H. polygyrus in IL-6-deficient mice. Thus, in vivo, IL-6 limits the Th2 response, modifies the Treg-cell phenotype, and promotes host susceptibility following helminth infection.