TNF receptor associated factor 3 plays a key role in development and function of invariant natural killer T cells

TCR signaling is a prerequisite for early stage development of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells, whereas IL-15 signaling is required for expansion and maturation at later stages. In this study, we show that TNF receptor associated factor 3 (TRAF3) plays a critical role in the transition between these two distinct signaling pathways and developmental stages. TRAF3-deficient iNKT cells in CD4CreTRAF3flox/flox (T-TRAF3−/−) mice exhibit defective up-regulation of T-bet and CD122, two critical molecules for IL-15 signaling, and as a consequence, IL-15–mediated iNKT cell proliferation and survival are impaired. Consistently, development of iNKT cells in T-TRAF3−/− mice shows a major defect at developmental stages 2 and 3, but not stages 0 and 1. We further demonstrated that defective T-bet up-regulation occurring during the stage 1 to stage 2 transition results from reduced TCR signaling in TRAF3−/− iNKT cells. In addition, mature TRAF3−/− iNKT cells displayed defective cytokine responses upon TCR stimulation. Collectively, our results reveal that by modulating the relative strength of TCR signaling, TRAF3 is an important regulator of iNKT cell development and functions.