MOTS-c is a mitochondrial-encoded interferon-linked host defense peptide

The mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) can trigger immune responses and directly entrap pathogens, but it is not known to encode active immune factors. The immune system is traditionally thought to be exclusively nuclear-encoded. Here, we report the identification of a host defense peptide (HDP) encoded in the human mitochondrial genome that presumably derives from the primordial proto-mitochondrial bacteria. We demonstrate that MOTS-c (mitochondrial open reading frame from the 12 S rRNA type-c) is a mitochondrial-encoded amphipathic and cationic peptide with direct antibacterial and immunomodulatory functions, consistent with the peptide chemistry and functions of known HDPs. MOTS-c targeted Escherichia coli and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), in part, by targeting their membranes using its hydrophobic and cationic domains. In a mouse model of acute peritonitis, MOTS-c fully neutralized MRSA infectivity. In human monocytes, interferon gamma (IFNγ), lipopolysaccharides (LPS), and differentiation signals each induced the expression of endogenous MOTS-c. Notably, exogenous MOTS-c, applied during primary mouse monocyte differentiation, reprogrammed the cells into macrophages with distinct transcriptomic signatures related to antigen presentation and IFN signaling. MOTS-c-programmed macrophages exhibited enhanced bacterial clearance and shifted metabolism. Our findings support MOTS-c as a first-in-class mitochondrial-encoded HDP and indicate that our immune system is not only encoded by the nuclear genome but also by the co-evolved mitochondrial genome.