CD154 deficiency increases the susceptibility of mice to develop hepatic steatosis when fed an olive oil–rich diet. The steatotic phenotype of the CD154KO mice is associated with an impairment of VLDL secretion by the liver and increased expression of lipogenic genes. CD154KO mice do not show signs of hepatocyte damage after 3 weeks of an olive oil–rich diet, making

this regimen potentially interesting to study mechanisms leading to simple steatosis, a first step in the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.54 UPR signaling pathways intersect with lipid metabolic pathways, and impairment of the UPR branches in ER stress conditions is associated with TG accumulation.9, 14, 18-20, 26 Several arguments suggest that one of the mechanisms by which CD154 is protective against steatosis is through regulatory interactions with the UPR. First, we evidenced a defect in UPR signaling in CD154KO mice LY294002 in vitro fed an olive oil–rich diet, as shown by reduced XBP1 mRNA splicing and eIF2α phosphorylation. Such defects were also seen when mice were challenged by the prototypical ER stress inductor, TM. In that case, we could clearly also demonstrate activation of the upstream UPR transducers IRE1 and PERK; this was not the case in olive oil–fed animals, which is likely due to the much lower level

of stress in that condition. We cannot, however, exclude that the distinctive decreased eIF2α phosphorylation observed in CD154KO mice may be linked to ER stress–independent regulations, through CD40-connected kinase pathways. Indeed, eIF2α can be the substrate of

PERK-independent kinase activation pathways.28, 55 Secondly, we used an in vitro Obeticholic Acid chemical structure model partly mimicking the in vivo situation, by using HepG2 cells treated with OA, the main component of olive oil, with or without added CD154. High amounts of oleate lead to hepatocyte TG accumulation, linked in part to the ER stress–dependent inhibition of apoB100 secretion.14 In our hands, OA led to UPR activation as shown by increased XBP1 splicing, an effect that was enhanced in the presence of CD154. MCE Importantly, CD154 alleviated the reduction of apoB100 secretion in HepG2 cells grown in the presence of OA, an effect dependent on the activation of the IRE1 pathway, as shown by its abrogation when using HepG2 IRE1 DN or following XBP1 silencing. Our work highlights a possible connection between CD40 and UPR signaling pathways in the liver. Other examples of extracellular signals modulating UPR pathways have been reported. Toll-like receptor signaling interferes with the UPR by regulating the ATF4-CHOP pathway and the insulin-like growth factor-1 also regulates ER stress pathways.56-58 Finally, XBP1 mRNA splicing in spleen B cells during plasma cell differentiation is induced by antibody-mediated CD40 activation.59, 60 The regulation of the UPR by extracellular signals may represent a mechanism by which the environment controls cell adaptation to stress.