title: Islet cells but not thyrocytes are susceptible to lysis by NK cells.
abstract: BB rats develop both pancreatic insulitis and lymphocytic thyroiditis, but whereas spontaneous autoimmune diabetes is common, hypothyroidism is rare. Splenic natural killer (NK) cells from acutely diabetic (AD) BB rats and from athymic nude rats are known to be cytotoxic to rat islet cells in vitro. To investigate possible differential tissue susceptibility to lysis by NK cells or their cytokines such as cytolysin (perforin) or NK cytotoxic factor (NKCF), we used an in vitro 51Cr-release assay to measure the cytotoxicity of splenocytes, cytolysin or NKCF against Wistar Furth (WF) and Fischer 344 (F-344) rat islet cells, and FRTL-5 F-344-derived and WRT Wistar-derived rat thyrocytes. The results demonstrated that spleen cells from AD-BB (RT1u) rats and athymic F-344 nude (RT11) rats are cytotoxic to WF (RT1u) islets and F-344 (RT11) islets, but not to FRTL-5 (RT11) or WRT (class I RT11) thyrocytes. WF and F-344 rat spleen cells were not cytotoxic to any of these cells. Thyrocytes are known to express class II molecules on their surface in chronic thyroiditis. We found that treatment of thyrocytes with interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) induced class II expression but did not increase the cytotoxicity of splenocytes against these cells. Cytolysin and NKCF were both cytotoxic to islets in a dose dependent manner, but FRTL-5 thyrocytes were resistant to killing by these cytokines. These findings suggest that islet cells and thyrocytes in vitro are differentially susceptible to lysis by NK cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Massachusetts Medical Center, Worcester 01655.
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kitagawa
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Greiner
authors.forename: C W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Reynolds
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Ortaldo
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Toccafondi
authors.forename: E S
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Handler
authors.forename: P H
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: van der Meide
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Mordes
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Rossini
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003601:Cytotoxicity Tests, Immunologic; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic; D004306:Dose-Response Relationship, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000276:immunology / Q000494:pharmacology; D007515:Islets of Langerhans / Q000276:immunology*; D007694:Killer Cells, Natural / Q000276:immunology*; D055646:Killer Factors, Yeast; D008297:Male; D011506:Proteins / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D011923:Rats, Nude; D013154:Spleen / Q000276:immunology; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000276:immunology*; D013966:Thyroiditis / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D055646:Killer Factors, Yeast; D011506:Proteins; D007371:Interferon-gamma