Temperature regulates NF-κB dynamics and function through timing of A20 transcription

NF-κB signaling plays a pivotal role in control of the inflammatory response. We investigated how the dynamics and function of NF-κB were affected by temperature within the mammalian physiological range (34 °C to 40 °C). An increase in temperature led to an increase in NF-κB nuclear/cytoplasmic oscillation frequency following Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha (TNFα) stimulation. Mathematical modeling suggested that this temperature sensitivity might be due to an A20-dependent mechanism, and A20 silencing removed the sensitivity to increased temperature. The timing of the early response of a key set of NF-κB target genes showed strong temperature dependence. The cytokine-induced expression of many (but not all) later genes was insensitive to temperature change (suggesting that they might be functionally temperature-compensated). Moreover, a set of temperature- and TNFα-regulated genes were implicated in NF-κB cross-talk with key cell-fate–controlling pathways. In conclusion, NF-κB dynamics and target gene expression are modulated by temperature and can accurately transmit multidimensional information to control inflammation.