title: The airway antigen sampling system: respiratory M cells as an alternative gateway for inhaled antigens.
abstract: In this study, we demonstrated a new airway Ag sampling site by analyzing tissue sections of the murine nasal passages. We revealed the presence of respiratory M cells, which had the ability to take up OVA and recombinant Salmonella typhimurium expressing GFP, in the turbinates covered with single-layer epithelium. These M cells were also capable of taking up respiratory pathogen group A Streptococcus after nasal challenge. Inhibitor of DNA binding/differentiation 2 (Id2)-deficient mice, which are deficient in lymphoid tissues, including nasopharynx-associated lymphoid tissue, had a similar frequency of M cell clusters in their nasal epithelia to that of their littermates, Id2(+/-) mice. The titers of Ag-specific Abs were as high in Id2(-/-) mice as in Id2(+/-) mice after nasal immunization with recombinant Salmonella-ToxC or group A Streptococcus, indicating that respiratory M cells were capable of sampling inhaled bacterial Ag to initiate an Ag-specific immune response. Taken together, these findings suggest that respiratory M cells act as a nasopharynx-associated lymphoid tissue-independent alternative gateway for Ag sampling and subsequent induction of Ag-specific immune responses in the upper respiratory tract.
authors.affiliation: Division of Mucosal Immunology, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Institute of Medical Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 108-8639, Japan.
authors.forename: Dong-Young
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Ayuko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fukuyama
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sagara
authors.forename: Takahiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nagatake
authors.forename: Il Gyu
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Kong
authors.forename: Kaoru
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Goda
authors.forename: Tomonori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nochi
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kunisawa
authors.forename: Shintaro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Yoshifumi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yokota
authors.forename: Chul Hee
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kiyono
mesh_terms: D000280:Administration, Inhalation; D000818:Animals; D000942:Antigens, Bacterial / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000276:immunology; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D018655:Lymphocyte Count; D008221:Lymphoid Tissue / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D051379:Mice; D057507:Mice, 129 Strain; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D009296:Nasal Cavity / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009297:Nasal Mucosa / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009305:Nasopharynx / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D037121:Plant Lectins / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000276:immunology; D012486:Salmonella typhimurium / Q000276:immunology; D013297:Streptococcus pyogenes / Q000276:immunology; D014420:Turbinates / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D039762:Ulex / Q000276:immunology; D014909:Wheat Germ Agglutinins / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D000942:Antigens, Bacterial; D037121:Plant Lectins; C036850:Ulex europaeus lectins; D014909:Wheat Germ Agglutinins