A bacterial RING ubiquitin ligase triggering stepwise degradation of BRISC via TOLLIP-mediated selective autophagy manipulates host inflammatory response.

Numerous bacterial pathogens have evolved tactics to interfere with the host ubiquitination network to evade clearance by the innate immune system. Nevertheless, the subtle antagonism between a bacterial ubiquitinase and a host deubiquitinase, through which they modify their respective targets within a multifaceted network, has yet to be characterized. BRCC3 isopeptidase complex (BRISC) is a newly identified K63-specific deubiquitinase complex that plays a crucial role in cellular signaling pathways such as inflammation. NleG, a type III secretion system (T3SS) effector, contains a conserved RING E3 ubiquitin ligase domain that interacts with host ubiquitination machinery, along with a distinct substrate-recognition domain that targets host proteins. Here, one particular variant, NleG6, was identified as mediating K27- and K29-linked polyubiquitination at residues K89 and K114 of ABRAXAS2/FAM175B, a scaffolding protein within the BRISC complex, leading to its degradation through TOLLIP (toll interacting protein)-mediated selective autophagy. Further investigations elucidated that ABRAXAS2 degradation triggered the subsequent degradation of adjacent BRCC3, which in turn, hindered TNIP1/ABIN1 degradation, ultimately inhibiting NFKB/NF-κB (nuclear factor kappa B)-mediated inflammatory responses. This chain of events offers valuable insights into the NFKB activation by the K63-specific deubiquitinating role of BRISC, unveiling how bacteria manipulate ubiquitin regulation and selective autophagy within the BRISC network to inhibit the host's inflammatory response and thus dominate a pathogen-host tug-of-war.