Abstract

T cell activation requires signaling through the TCR and costimulatory molecules, such as CD28. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small noncoding RNAs that regulate gene expression posttranscriptionally and are also known to be involved in lymphocyte development and function. In this paper, we set out to examine potential roles of miRNAs in T cell activation, using genome-wide expression profiling to identify miRNAs differentially regulated following T cell activation. One of the miRNAs upregulated after T cell activation, miR-214, was predicted to be capable of targeting Pten based on bioinformatics and reports suggesting that it targets Pten in ovarian tumor cells. Upregulation of miR-214 in T cells inversely correlated with levels of phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10. In vivo, transcripts containing the 3' untranslated region of Pten, including the miR-214 target sequence, were negatively regulated after T cell activation, and forced expression of miR-214 in T cells led to increased proliferation after stimulation. Blocking CD28 signaling in vivo prevented miR-214 upregulation in alloreactive T cells. Stimulation of T cells through the TCR alone was not sufficient to result in upregulation of miR-214. Thus, costimulation-dependent upregulation of miR-214 promotes T cell activation by targeting the negative regulator Pten. Thus, the requirement for T cell costimulation is, in part, related to its ability to regulate expression of miRNAs that control T cell activation.