Organ-dependent in vivo priming of naive CD4+, but not CD8+, T cells by plasmacytoid dendritic cells.
Plasmacytoid dendritic cells (PDCs) play a pivotal role as cytokine-secreting accessory cells in the antimicrobial immune defense. In contrast, the capacity of PDCs to act as antigen-presenting cells in naive T cell priming remains unclear. By studying T cell responses in mice that lack conventional DCs (cDCs), and by the use of a PDC-specific antigen-targeting strategy, we show that PDCs can initiate productive naive CD4(+) T cell responses in lymph nodes, but not in the spleen. PDC-triggered CD4(+) T cell responses differed from cDC-driven responses in that they were not associated with concomitant CD8(+) T cell priming. Our results establish PDCs as a bona fide DC subset that initiates unique CD4(+) Th cell-dominated primary immune responses.
Sapoznikov
Anita
A
Department of Immunology, The Weizmann Institute of Science, 76100 Rehovot, Israel.
Fischer
Jens A A
JA
Zaft
Tami
T
Krauthgamer
Rita
R
Dzionek
Andrzej
A
Jung
Steffen
S
D000818:Animals; D000941:Antigens / Q000737:chemistry; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism; D003713:Dendritic Cells / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D007107:Immune System; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D010641:Phenotype; D013154:Spleen / Q000378:metabolism
D000941:Antigens; D016207:Cytokines