γ-aminobutyrate (GAB) functions as a bioenergetic and signaling gatekeeper to control T cell inflammation

γ-Aminobutyrate (GAB) is the biochemical form of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) at physiological pH and functions as an essential neurotransmitter in the vertebrate’s central nervous system (CNS). Growing evidence suggests that GAB may also mediate intercellular communications to shape various physiological processes, including immune response. Beyond acting as a paracrine signaling molecule, how GAB metabolism is controlled to exert many distinct functions remains elusive. By an integrated analysis of the extracellular metabolome, stable isotope traced metabolic pathway analysis, and metabolic transcriptome, we revealed that GAB is one of the most abundant metabolites produced through glutamine and arginine catabolism in CD4 + T help 17 (T H 17) and induced T regulatory (iT reg ) cells. GAB functions as a bioenergetic and signaling gatekeeper by reciprocally controlling pro-inflammatory T H 17 cell and anti-inflammatory iT reg cell differentiation through distinct mechanisms. The expression of 4-aminobutyrate aminotransferase (ABAT) funnels GAB, as an anaplerotic substrate, into the TCA cycle to maximize carbon allocation in promoting T H 17 cell differentiation. By contrast, the absence of ABAT activities in iT reg cells enables GAB exporting to the extracellular environment and acting as an autocrine signaling metabolite to promote iT reg cell differentiation. Accordingly, genetic or pharmacological ablation of ABAT activity in T cells confers protection against experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) pathogenic progression. Conversely, genetic ablation of GABA(A) receptor in T cells deteriorates EAE pathogenic progression. Collectively, our results suggest that the cell-autonomous control exerted by GAB on CD4 + T cell is bimodal and consists of the sequential action of two discrete processes, ABAT–dependent mitochondrial anaplerosis and the receptor-dependent autocrine signaling response, both of which are required for a properly controlled T cell-mediated inflammation.