IL-1RA Disrupts ATP Activation of P2RX7 in Human Monocyte-Derived Microglia-like Cells

The immune system has a dynamic role in neurodegenerative diseases, and purinergic receptors allow immune cells to recognize neuronal signaling, cell injury, or stress. Purinergic Receptor 7 (P2RX7) can modulate inflammatory cascades and its expression is upregulated in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) brain tissue. P2RX7 expression is enriched in microglia, and elevated levels are found in microglia surrounding amyloid-beta plaques in the brain. While P2RX7 is thought to play a role in neurodegenerative diseases, how it modulates pathology and disease progression is not well understood. Here, we utilize a human monocyte-derived microglia-like cell (MDMi) model to interrogate P2RX7 activation and downstream consequences on microglia function. By using MDMi derived from human donors, we can examine how human donor variation impacts microglia function. We assessed P2RX7-driven IL1β and IL18 production and amyloid-beta peptide 1-42 (Aβ1-42) uptake levels. Our results show that ATP-stimulation of MDMi triggers upregulation of IL1β and IL18 expression. This upregulation of cytokine gene expression is blocked with the A740003 P2RX7 antagonist. We find that high extracellular ATP conditions also reduced MDMi capacity for Aβ1-42 uptake, and this loss of function is prevented through A740003 inhibition of P2RX7. In addition, pretreatment of MDMi with IL-1RA limited ATP-driven IL1β and IL18 gene expression upregulation, indicating that ATP immunomodulation of P2RX7 is IL-1R dependent. Aβ1-42 uptake was higher with IL-1RA pretreatment compared to ATP treatment alone, suggesting P2RX7 regulates phagocytic engulfment through IL-1 signaling. Overall, our results demonstrate that P2RX7 is a key response protein for high extracellular ATP in human microglia-like cells, and its function can be modulated by IL-1 signaling. This work opens the door to future studies examining anti-IL-1 biologics to increase the clearance of amyloid-beta.