Cytokine secretion by CD4 T lymphocytes acquired in response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection.
The results of this study, in which CD4 T cells were harvested from mice at various times during the course of a virulent Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection and examined for their secretion of cytokines during culture in vitro with bone marrow-derived macrophages presenting mycobacterial Ag, provide evidence for the existence of two separate waves of cytokine-producing CD4 cells. The first, which peaks at the time at which protective immunity was maximally expressed, was characterized as a IFN-gamma-secreting cell population that preferentially recognized macrophages presenting mycobacterial culture filtrate proteins, or that were infected with the live organism. A second population, which emerged 20 to 40 days later at a time when the infection had been contained, secreted IL-4 in response to the filtrate proteins, but also reacted particularly strongly to the 65-kDa (hsp60) heat shock protein molecule of M. tuberculosis. These data indicate that acquired immunity to tuberculosis infection involves the production of both Th1- and Th2-like cell populations that differ in terms of their kinetics of emergence and loss, and in terms of their Ag specificity.
Orme
I M
IM
Department of Microbiology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523.
Roberts
A D
AD
Griffin
J P
JP
Abrams
J S
JS
D000818:Animals; D000938:Antigen-Presenting Cells / Q000276:immunology; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000276:immunology; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000276:immunology; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000378:metabolism; D015847:Interleukin-4 / Q000378:metabolism; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000378:metabolism; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000276:immunology*; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology*; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000276:immunology*; D013997:Time Factors; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000276:immunology*
D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D016207:Cytokines; D015850:Interleukin-6; D016753:Interleukin-10; D015847:Interleukin-4; D016173:Macrophage Colony-Stimulating Factor; D007371:Interferon-gamma