title: Communication between human mast cells and CD4(+) T cells through antigen-dependent interactions.
abstract: Mast cells (MCs) are immune cells residing in tissues where pathogens are first encountered. It has been indicated that MCs might also be involved in setting the outcome of T-cell responses. However, little is known about the capacity of human MCs to express MHC class II and/or to capture and present antigens to CD4(+) T cells. To study the T-cell stimulatory potential of human MCs, CD34(+) stem cell derived MCs were generated. These cells expressed HLA-DR when stimulated with IFN-γ, and, importantly, presented peptide and protein for activation of antigen-specific CD4(+) T cells. The interplay between MC and T cell led to increased HLA-DR expression on MCs. MCs were present in close proximity to T cells in tonsil and expressed HLA-DR and CD80, indicating their ability to present antigens to CD4(+) T cells in T-cell areas of human LNs. Our data show that MCs can present native antigens to human CD4(+) T cells and that HLA-DR expressing MCs are present in tonsil tissue, indicating that human MCs can directly activate T cells and provide a rationale to study the potential of MCs to prime and/or skew human T-cell responses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Rheumatology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands. j.suurmond@lumc.nl
authors.forename: Jolien
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Suurmond
authors.forename: Jurgen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van Heemst
authors.forename: Jacqueline
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: van Heiningen
authors.forename: Annemarie L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Dorjée
authors.forename: Marco W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Schilham
authors.forename: Feddo B
authors.initials: FB
authors.lastname: van der Beek
authors.forename: Tom W J
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Huizinga
authors.forename: Annemie J M
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Schuerwegh
authors.forename: René E M
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Toes
mesh_terms: D017951:Antigen Presentation / Q000276:immunology*; D018122:B7-1 Antigen / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000276:immunology; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D002469:Cell Separation; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000276:immunology*; D008407:Mast Cells / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D014066:Palatine Tonsil / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D018122:B7-1 Antigen; D006684:HLA-DR Antigens
keywords: Antigen presentation; CD4+ T lymphocytes; Mast cell