Extinguishing maternal immune responses during pregnancy: implications for immunosuppression

AL Mellor, DH Munn - Seminars in immunology, 2001 - Elsevier
AL Mellor, DH Munn
Seminars in immunology, 2001Elsevier
Mammals owe their existence to immunosuppressive processes that prevent fetal rejection
in utero. Blocking tryptophan catabolism during murine pregnancy allows maternal T cells to
provoke fetal allograft rejection. Cells expressing indoleamine 2, 3-dioxygenase (IDO),
which catabolizes tryptophan, prevent Tcell cycle progression and enhance activation
induced T cell death. Here, we discuss the role of cells expressing IDO in regulating
maternal T cell immunity during pregnancy and consider whether this mechanism might …
Mammals owe their existence to immunosuppressive processes that prevent fetal rejection in utero. Blocking tryptophan catabolism during murine pregnancy allows maternal T cells to provoke fetal allograft rejection. Cells expressing indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO), which catabolizes tryptophan, prevent Tcell cycle progression and enhance activation induced T cell death. Here, we discuss the role of cells expressing IDO in regulating maternal T cell immunity during pregnancy and consider whether this mechanism might contribute to immunological discrimination by promoting T cell tolerance in other circumstances.
Elsevier