title: Virus and autoimmunity: induction of autoimmune disease in mice by mouse T lymphotropic virus (MTLV) destroying CD4+ T cells.
abstract: Neonatal infection of the mouse T lymphotropic virus (MTLV), a member of herpes viridae, causes various organ-specific autoimmune diseases, such as autoimmune gastritis, in selected strains of normal mice. The infection selectively depletes CD4+ T cells in the thymus and periphery for 2-3 wk from 1 wk after infection. Thymectomy 3 wk after neonatal MTLV infection enhances the autoimmune responses and produces autoimmune diseases at higher incidences and in a wider spectrum of organs than MTLV infection alone. On the other hand, inoculation of peripheral CD4+ cells from syngeneic noninfected adult mice prevents the autoimmune development. These autoimmune diseases can be adoptively transferred to syngeneic athymic nude mice by CD4+ T cells. The virus is not detected by bioassay in the organs/tissues damaged by the autoimmune responses. Furthermore, similar autoimmune diseases can be induced in normal mice by manipulating the neonatal thymus/T cells (e.g., by neonatal thymectomy) without virus infection. These results taken together indicate that neonatal MTLV infection elicits autoimmune disease by primarily affecting thymocytes/T cells, not self Ags. It may provoke or enhance thymic production of CD4+ pathogenic self-reactive T cells by altering the thymic clonal deletion mechanism, or reduce the production of CD4+ regulatory T cells controlling self-reactive T cells, or both. The possibility is discussed that other T cell-tropic viruses may cause autoimmunity in humans and animals by affecting the T cell immune system, not the self Ags to be targeted by the autoimmunity.
authors.affiliation: The Rockefeller University, New York 10021, USA.
authors.forename: S S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Morse
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sakaguchi
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sakaguchi
mesh_terms: D019264:Adoptive Transfer; D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology*; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D005756:Gastritis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology; D006566:Herpesviridae Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008819:Mice, Nude; D018146:Muromegalovirus / Q000276:immunology*; D009928:Organ Specificity / Q000276:immunology; D016693:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta / Q000096:biosynthesis; D013934:Thymectomy; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D016693:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta