Immunology
Abstract
Research Article
Authors
Kaoru Saegusa, Naozumi Ishimaru, Kumiko Yanagi, Rieko Arakaki, Kouichi Ogawa, Ichiro Saito, Nobuhiko Katunuma, Yoshio Hayashi
Abstract
Commentary
Authors
Terry Davies, Russell Marians, Rauf Latif
Abstract
Research Article
Authors
Michael J. Walter, Jeffrey D. Morton, Naohiro Kajiwara, Eugene Agapov, Michael J. Holtzman
Abstract
Research Article
Authors
Niels C. Riedemann, Ren-Feng Guo, Thomas A. Neff, Ines J. Laudes, Katie A. Keller, Vidya J. Sarma, Maciej M. Markiewski, Dimitrios Mastellos, Christoph W. Strey, Carl L. Pierson, John D. Lambris, Firas S. Zetoune, Peter A. Ward
Abstract
Research Article
Authors
Tania Nikolcheva, Stephane Pyronnet, Szu-yi Chou, Nahum Sonenberg, An Song, Carol Clayberger, Alan M. Krensky
Abstract
Group B coxsackieviral (CVB) infection commonly causes viral myocarditis. Mice are protected from CVB3 myocarditis by gene-targeted knockout of p56Lck(Lck), the Src family kinase (Src) essential for T cell activation. Extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK-1/2) can influence cell function downstream of Lck. Using T cell lines and neonatal cardiac myocytes we investigated the role of ERK-1/2 in CVB3 infection. In Jurkat T cells ERK-1/2 is rapidly activated by CVB3; but, this response is absent in Lck-negative JCaM T cells. Inhibition of ERK-1/2 with UO126 reduced CVB3 titers in Jurkat cells, but not in JCaM cells. In cardiac myocytes CVB3 activation of ERK-1/2 is blocked by the Src inhibitor PP2. In addition, viral production in myocytes is decreased by Src or ERK-1/2 inhibition. In vitro, in both immune and myocardial cells, ERK-1/2 is activated by CVB3 downstream of Lck and other Src’s and is necessary for efficient CVB3 replication. In vivo, following CVB3 infection, ERK-1/2 activation is evident in the myocardium. ERK-1/2 activation is intense in the hearts of myocarditis-susceptible A/J mice. In contrast, significantly less ERK-1/2 activation is found in the hearts of myocarditis-resistant C57BL/6 mice. Therefore, the ERK-1/2 response to CVB3 infection may contribute to differential host susceptibility to viral myocarditis.
Authors
Mary Anne Opavsky, Tami Martino, Marlene Rabinovitch, Josef Penninger, Chris Richardson, Martin Petric, Cathy Trinidad, Lisa Butcher, Janice Chan, Peter P. Liu
Abstract
The TNF-like ligands APRIL and BLyS are close relatives and share the capacity to bind the receptors TACI and BCMA. BLyS has been shown to play an important role in B cell homeostasis and autoimmunity, but the biological role of APRIL remains less well defined. Analysis of T cells revealed an activation-dependent increase in APRIL mRNA expression. We therefore generated mice expressing APRIL as a transgene in T cells. These mice appeared normal and showed no signs of B cell hyperplasia. Transgenic T cells revealed a greatly enhanced survival in vitro as well as enhanced survival of staphylococcal enterotoxin B–reactive CD4+ T cells in vivo, which both directly correlate with elevated Bcl-2 levels. Analysis of humoral responses to T cell–dependent antigens in the transgenic mice indicated that APRIL affects only IgM but not IgG responses. In contrast, T cell–independent type 2 (TI-2) humoral response was enhanced in APRIL transgenic mice. As TACI was previously reported to be indispensable for TI-2 antibody formation, these results suggest a role for APRIL/TACI interactions in the generation of this response. Taken together, our data indicate that APRIL is involved in the induction and/or maintenance of T and B cell responses.
Authors
Jens V. Stein, Marta López-Fraga, Fernando A. Elustondo, Carla E. Carvalho-Pinto, Dolores Rodríguez, Ruth Gómez-Caro, Joan de Jong, Carlos Martínez-A, Jan Paul Medema, Michael Hahne
Abstract
Estrogen is thought to contribute to the increased frequency of autoimmune disorders occurring in females, but a molecular basis for its effects on autoimmunity remains to be elucidated. We have shown previously that estrogen leads to the survival and activation of autoreactive cells in the naive repertoire. To identify the molecular pathways involved in B cell tolerance, we sought to identify genes that are differentially regulated by estrogen in mouse B cells. Several genes involved in B cell activation and survival, including cd22, shp-1, bcl-2, and vcam-1, were upregulated by estrogen in B cells. We found that overexpression of CD22 and SHP-1 in B cells decreased B cell receptor signaling. Estrogen receptors α and β are expressed on B cells and are functional, since they can directly upregulate expression of CD22, SHP-1, and Bcl-2. Estrogen treatment protected isolated primary B cells from B cell receptor–mediated apoptosis. These results suggest that estrogen induces a genetic program that alters survival and activation of B cells in a B cell–autonomous fashion and thus skews the naive immune system toward autoreactivity.
Authors
Christine M. Grimaldi, James Cleary, A. Selma Dagtas, Dariush Moussai, Betty Diamond
Abstract
Copolymer 1 (Cop 1, Copaxone [Teva Marion Partners, Kansas City, Missouri, USA]), a random amino acid copolymer of tyrosine (Y), glutamic acid (E), alanine (A), and lysine (K), reduces the frequency of relapses by 30% in relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. In the present study, novel random four–amino acid copolymers, whose design was based on the nature of the anchor residues of the immunodominant epitope of myelin basic protein (MBP) 85-99 and of the binding pockets of MS-associated HLA-DR2 (DRB1*1501), have been synthesized by solid-phase chemistry. Poly (Y, F, A, K) (YFAK) inhibited binding of the biotinylated MBP 86-100 epitope to HLA-DR2 molecules more efficiently than did either unlabeled MBP 85-99 or any other copolymer including Cop 1. Moreover, YFAK and poly (F, A, K) (FAK) were much more effective than Cop 1 in inhibition of MBP 85-99–specific HLA-DR2–restricted T cell clones. Most importantly, these novel copolymers suppressed experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis, induced in the susceptible SJL/J (H-2s) strain of mice with the encephalitogenic epitope PLP 139-151, more efficiently than did Cop 1. Thus, random synthetic copolymers designed according to the binding motif of the human immunodominant epitope MBP 85-99 and the binding pockets of HLA-DR2 might be more beneficial than Cop 1 in treatment of MS.
Authors
Masha Fridkis-Hareli, Laura Santambrogio, Joel N.H. Stern, Lars Fugger, Celia Brosnan, Jack L. Strominger
Abstract
Dendritic cell–based (DC-based) immunotherapy represents a promising approach to the prevention and treatment of many diseases, including cancer, but current strategies have met with only limited success in clinical and preclinical studies. Previous studies have demonstrated that a TAT peptide derived from the HIV TAT protein has the ability to transduce peptides or proteins into various cells. Here, we describe the use of TAT-mediated delivery of T cell peptides into DCs to prolong antigen presentation and enhance T cell responses. While immunization of mice with DCs pulsed with an antigenic peptide derived from the human TRP2 protein generated partial protective immunity against B16 tumor, immunization with DCs loaded with a TAT-TRP2 peptide resulted in complete protective immunity, as well as significant inhibition of lung metastases in a 3-day tumor model. Although both DC/TRP2 and DC/TAT-TRP2 immunization increased the number of TRP2-specific CD8+ T cells detected by Kb/TRP2 tetramers, T cell activity elicited by DC/TAT-TRP2 was three- to tenfold higher than that induced by DC/TRP2. Furthermore, both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells were required for antitumor immunity demonstrated by experiments with antibody depletion of subsets of T cells, as well as with various knockout mice. These results suggest that a TAT-mediated antigen delivery system may have important clinical applications for cancer therapy.
Authors
Helen Y. Wang, Tihui Fu, Gang Wang, Gang Zeng, Donna M. Perry-Lalley, James C. Yang, Nicholas P. Restifo, Patrick Hwu, Rong-Fu Wang
Copyright © 2025 American Society for Clinical Investigation
ISSN: 0021-9738 (print), 1558-8238 (online)