Itch (and Cyld) stops inflammation

The Missing Link between Itch and Inflammation in Atopic Dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis is a common skin disease with high morbidity and is associated with severe itch and chronic skin inflammation. In this issue of Cell, Wilson et al. demonstrate that epithelial cells communicate directly with cutaneous sensory neurons via a cytokine to induce itch.

Ndfip1 regulates itch ligase activity and airway inflammation via UbcH7.

The ubiquitin-ligating enzyme (E3) Itch plays a crucial role in the regulation of inflammation, and Itch deficiency leads to severe airway inflammation. However, the molecular mechanisms by which Itch function is regulated remain elusive. In this study, we found that nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae induces the association of Itch with Ndfip1. Both Itch(-/-) and Ndfip1(-/-) mice exhibited sev...

Why does airway inflammation persist after the smoking stops?

CYLD and SUMO in neuroblastoma therapy

Cylindromatosis gene, CYLD is a tumor suppressor gene that was originally identified as a gene mutated in familial cylindromatosis and related diseases [1]. CYLD belongs to the deubiquitination enzymes family, which function by removing of ubiquitin chains from different proteins. The ubiquitin-specific protease domain of CYLD is located at the C-terminus and mutations in this region inactivate...

Inhibition of PDE4B suppresses inflammation by increasing expression of the deubiquitinase CYLD

The deubiquitinase CYLD acts as a key negative regulator to tightly control overactive inflammation. Most anti-inflammatory strategies have focused on directly targeting the positive regulator, which often results in significant side effects such as suppression of the host defence response. Here, we show that inhibition of phosphodiesterase 4B (PDE4B) markedly enhances upregulation of CYLD expr...