Hobit confers tissue-dependent programs to type 1 innate lymphoid cells.

Abstract

Identification of type 1 innate lymphoid cells (ILC1s) has been problematic. The transcription factor Hobit encoded by <i>Zfp683</i> has been proposed as a major driver of ILC1 programs. Using <i>Zfp683</i> reporter mice, we showed that correlation of Hobit expression with ILC1s is tissue- and context-dependent. In liver and intestinal mucosa, <i>Zfp683</i> expression correlated well with ILC1s; in salivary glands, <i>Zfp683</i> was coexpressed with the natural killer (NK) master transcription factors Eomes and TCF1 in a unique cell population, which we call ILC1-like NK cells; during viral infection, <i>Zfp683</i> was induced in conventional NK cells of spleen and liver. The impact of <i>Zfp683</i> deletion on ILC1s and NK cells was also multifaceted, including a marked decrease in granzyme- and interferon-gamma (IFNγ)-producing ILC1s in the liver, slightly fewer ILC1s and more Eomes⁺ TCF1⁺ ILC1-like NK cells in salivary glands, and only reduced production of granzyme B by ILC1 in the intestinal mucosa. NK cell-mediated control of viral infection was unaffected. We conclude that Hobit has two major impacts on ILC1s: It sustains liver ILC1 numbers, while promoting ILC1 functional maturation in other tissues by controlling TCF1, Eomes, and granzyme expression.