Glucagon-like peptide 1 receptor is a T cell-negative costimulatory molecule

Abstract

Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP-1R) is a key regulator of glucose metabolism known to be expressed by pancreatic β cells. We herein investigated the role of GLP-1R on T lymphocytes during immune response. Our data showed that a subset of T lymphocytes expresses GLP-1R, which is upregulated during alloimmune response, similarly to PD-1. When mice received islet or cardiac allotransplantation, an expansion of GLP-1R^pos T cells occurred in the spleen and was found to infiltrate the graft. Additional single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis conducted on GLP-1R^pos and GLP-1R^neg CD3⁺ T cells unveiled the existence of molecular and functional dissimilarities between both subpopulations, as the GLP-1R^pos are mainly composed of exhausted CD8 T cells. GLP-1R acts as a T cell-negative costimulatory molecule, and GLP-1R signaling prolongs allograft survival, mitigates alloimmune response, and reduces T lymphocyte graft infiltration. Notably, GLP-1R antagonism triggered anti-tumor immunity when tested in a preclinical mouse model of colorectal cancer.