title: An obligate cell-intrinsic function for CD28 in Tregs.
abstract: Tregs expressing the transcription factor FOXP3 are critical for immune homeostasis. The costimulatory molecule CD28 is required for optimal activation and function of naive T cells; however, its role in Treg function has been difficult to dissect, as CD28 is required for thymic Treg development, and blockade of CD28-ligand interactions has confounding effects in trans on nonregulatory cells. To address this question, we created Treg-specific Cd28 conditional knockout mice. Despite the presence of normal numbers of FOXP3+ cells, these animals accumulated large numbers of activated T cells, developed severe autoimmunity that primarily affected the skin and lungs, and failed to appropriately resolve induced experimental allergic encephalomyelitis. This in vivo functional impairment was accompanied by dampened expression of CTLA-4, PD-1, and CCR6. Disease occurrence was not due to subversion of Cd28-deficient Tregs into pathogenic cells, as complementation with normal Tregs prevented disease occurrence. Interestingly, in these "competitive" environments, Cd28-deficient Tregs exhibited a pronounced proliferative/survival disadvantage. These data demonstrate clear postmaturational roles for CD28 in FOXP3+ Tregs and provide mechanisms which we believe to be novel to explain how interruption of CD28-ligand interactions may enhance immune responses independent of effects on thymic development or on other cell types.
authors.affiliation: Transplant Institute, Department of Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
authors.forename: Ruan
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Alexandria
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Huynh
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Whitcher
authors.forename: Jihoon
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Jonathan S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Maltzman
authors.forename: Laurence A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Turka
mesh_terms: D019264:Adoptive Transfer; D000818:Animals; D015551:Autoimmunity; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D018106:CD28 Antigens / Q000172:deficiency / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004681:Encephalomyelitis, Autoimmune, Experimental / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D008164:Luminescent Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D008221:Lymphoid Tissue / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D018106:CD28 Antigens; D051858:Forkhead Transcription Factors; C498833:Foxp3 protein, mouse; D008164:Luminescent Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C054562:yellow fluorescent protein, Bacteria