title: Type 1 diabetes in BioBreeding rats is critically linked to an imbalance between Th17 and regulatory T cells and an altered TCR repertoire.
abstract: Diabetes-prone BioBreeding (DP-BB) rats spontaneously develop type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM) on grounds of their MHC haplotype RT1(u) and a point mutation in the Gimap5 gene. In this study, we report that DP-BB rats exhibit an increasingly severe imbalance, in particular between Th17 and regulatory T (T(reg)) cells, within the first months of age. This can be assigned to an excess in effector T cells because neither the percentage nor the function of the T(reg) cells is compromised. Flow cytometric analysis of Vbeta segment usage and CDR3 spectratyping further suggest that the disturbed repertoire of peripheral T cells may also contribute to the development of T1DM in DP-BB rats. Importantly, expansion of T(reg) cells in vivo by means of a CD28 superagonistic Ab as well as adoptive transfer of T(reg) cells efficiently interferes with the development of T1DM in DP-BB rats, whereas treatment with conventional Th cells does not afford protection. Using a newly generated strain of enhanced GFP transgenic rats, we could further demonstrate that the transferred T(reg) cells persist in the recipient rats for several months and partially correct the imbalance between Th17 and T(reg) cells. Thus, our data support the hypothesis that unchecked effector T cell action and a disturbed T cell repertoire contribute to the development of T1DM in DP-BB rats, which may also have implications for a better understanding of the human disease.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, University of Göttingen Medical School, Germany.
authors.forename: Jens
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van den Brandt
authors.forename: Henrike J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Fischer
authors.forename: Lutz
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Walter
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hünig
authors.forename: Ingrid
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Klöting
authors.forename: Holger M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Reichardt
mesh_terms: D019264:Adoptive Transfer; D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D019204:GTP-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D020381:Interleukin-17 / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D053645:Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D008231:Lymphopenia / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009154:Mutation; D051381:Rats; D011913:Rats, Inbred BB; D055647:Rats, Transgenic; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D006377:T-Lymphocytes, Helper-Inducer / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000637:transplantation
chemical_list: D020381:Interleukin-17; D053645:Interleukin-2 Receptor alpha Subunit; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell; D049452:Green Fluorescent Proteins; D019204:GTP-Binding Proteins; C494977:Gimap5 protein, rat