A cytomegalovirus glycoprotein re-routes MHC class I complexes to lysosomes for degradation.
(1/5439)
Mouse cytomegalovirus (MCMV) early gene expression interferes with the major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC class I) pathway of antigen presentation. Here we identify a 48 kDa type I transmembrane glycoprotein encoded by the MCMV early gene m06, which tightly binds to properly folded beta2-microglobulin (beta2m)-associated MHC class I molecules in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). This association is mediated by the lumenal/transmembrane part of the protein. gp48-MHC class I complexes are transported out of the ER, pass the Golgi, but instead of being expressed on the cell surface, they are redirected to the endocytic route and rapidly degraded in a Lamp-1(+) compartment. As a result, m06-expressing cells are impaired in presenting antigenic peptides to CD8(+) T cells. The cytoplasmic tail of gp48 contains two di-leucine motifs. Mutation of the membrane-proximal di-leucine motif of gp48 restored surface expression of MHC class I, while mutation of the distal one had no effect. The results establish a novel viral mechanism for downregulation of MHC class I molecules by directly binding surface-destined MHC complexes and exploiting the cellular di-leucine sorting machinery for lysosomal degradation. (+info)
Crystal structure of an MHC class I presented glycopeptide that generates carbohydrate-specific CTL.
(2/5439)
T cell receptor (TCR) recognition of nonpeptidic and modified peptide antigens has been recently uncovered but is still poorly understood. Immunization with an H-2Kb-restricted glycopeptide RGY8-6H-Gal2 generates a population of cytotoxic T cells that express both alpha/beta TCR, specific for glycopeptide, and gamma/delta TCR, specific for the disaccharide, even on glycolipids. The crystal structure of Kb/RGY8-6H-Gal2 now demonstrates that the peptide and H-2Kb structures are unaffected by the peptide glycosylation, but the central region of the putative TCR binding site is dominated by the extensive exposure of the tethered carbohydrate. These features of the Kb/RGY8-6H-Gal2 structure are consistent with the individual ligand binding preferences identified for the alpha/beta and gamma/delta TCRs and thus explain the generation of a carbohydrate-specific T cell response. (+info)
Generation of CD8(+) T-cell responses to Mycobacterium bovis and mycobacterial antigen in experimental bovine tuberculosis.
(3/5439)
Protective immunity against tuberculosis is considered to be essentially cell mediated, and an important role for CD8(+) T lymphocytes has been suggested by several studies of murine and human infections. The present work, using an experimental model of infection with Mycobacterium bovis in cattle, showed that live M. bovis elicits the activation of CD8(+) T cells in vitro. However, a sonic extract prepared from M. bovis (MBSE) and protein purified derivative (PPDb) also induced a considerable degree of activation of the CD8(+) T cells. Analysis of proliferative responses of peripheral blood mononuclear cells, purified CD8(+) T cells, and CD8(+) T-cell clones to M. bovis and to soluble antigenic preparations (MBSE, PPDb) showed that the responses of all three types of cells were always superior for live mycobacteria but that strong responses were also obtained with complex soluble preparations. Furthermore, while cytotoxic capabilities were not investigated, the CD8(+) T cells were found to produce and release gamma interferon in response to antigen (live and soluble), which indicated one possible protective mechanism for these cells in bovine tuberculosis. Finally, it was demonstrated by metabolic inhibition with brefeldin A and cytochalasin D at the clonal level that an endogenous pathway of antigen processing is required for presentation to bovine CD8(+) cells and that presentation is also dependent on phagocytosis of the antigen. (+info)
Interleukin-10-treated human dendritic cells induce a melanoma-antigen-specific anergy in CD8(+) T cells resulting in a failure to lyse tumor cells.
(4/5439)
Dendritic cells (DC) are critically involved in the initiation of primary immune processes, including tumor rejection. In our study, we investigated the effect of interleukin-10 (IL-10)-treated human DC on the properties of CD8(+) T cells that are known to be essential for the destruction of tumor cells. We show that IL-10-pretreatment of DC not only reduces their allostimulatory capacity, but also induces a state of alloantigen-specific anergy in both primed and naive (CD45RA+) CD8(+) T cells. To investigate the influence of IL-10-treated DC on melanoma-associated antigen-specific T cells, we generated a tyrosinase-specific CD8(+) T-cell line by several rounds of stimulation with the specific antigen. After coculture with IL-10-treated DC, restimulation of the T-cell line with untreated, antigen-pulsed DC demonstrated peptide-specific anergy in the tyrosinase-specific T cells. Addition of IL-2 to the anergic T cells reversed the state of both alloantigen- or peptide-specific anergy. In contrast to optimally stimulated CD8(+) T cells, anergic tyrosinase-specific CD8(+) T cells, after coculture with peptide-pulsed IL-10-treated DC, failed to lyse an HLA-A2-positive and tyrosinase-expressing melanoma cell line. Thus, our data demonstrate that IL-10-treated DC induce an antigen-specific anergy in cytotoxic CD8(+) T cells, a process that might be a mechanism of tumors to inhibit immune surveillance by converting DC into tolerogenic antigen-presenting cells. (+info)
Presentation of renal tumor antigens by human dendritic cells activates tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes against autologous tumor: implications for live kidney cancer vaccines.
(5/5439)
The clinical impact of dendritic cells (DCs) in the treatment of human cancer depends on their unique role as the most potent antigen-presenting cells that are capable of priming an antitumor T-cell response. Here, we demonstrate that functional DCs can be generated from peripheral blood of patients with metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) by culture of monocytes/macrophages (CD14+) in autologous serum containing medium (RPMI) in the presence of granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor and interleukin (IL) 4. For testing the capability of RCC-antigen uptake and processing, we loaded these DCs with autologous tumor lysate (TuLy) using liposomes, after which cytometric analysis of the DCs revealed a markedly increased expression of HLA class I antigen and a persistent high expression of class II. The immunogenicity of DC-TuLy was further tested in cultures of renal tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) cultured in low-dose IL-2 (20 Biologic Response Modifier Program units/ml). A synergistic effect of DC-TuLy and IL-2 in stimulating a T cell-dependent immune response was demonstrated by: (a) the increase of growth expansion of TILs (9.4-14.3-fold; day 21); (b) the up-regulation of the CD3+ CD56- TcR+ (both CD4+ and CD8+) cell population; (c) the augmentation of T cell-restricted autologous tumor lysis; and (d) the enhancement of IFN-gamma, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor, and IL-6 mRNA expression by TILs. Taken together, these data implicate that DC-TuLy can activate immunosuppressed TIL via an induction of enhanced antitumor CTL responses associated with production of Thl cells. This indicates a potential role of DC-TuLy vaccines for induction of active immunity in patients with advanced RCC. (+info)
Identification of MAGE-3 epitopes presented by HLA-DR molecules to CD4(+) T lymphocytes.
(6/5439)
MAGE-type genes are expressed by many tumors of different histological types and not by normal cells, except for male germline cells, which do not express major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules. Therefore, the antigens encoded by MAGE-type genes are strictly tumor specific and common to many tumors. We describe here the identification of the first MAGE-encoded epitopes presented by histocompatibility leukocyte antigen (HLA) class II molecules to CD4(+) T lymphocytes. Monocyte-derived dendritic cells were loaded with a MAGE-3 recombinant protein and used to stimulate autologous CD4(+) T cells. We isolated CD4(+) T cell clones that recognized two different MAGE-3 epitopes, MAGE-3114-127 and MAGE-3121-134, both presented by the HLA-DR13 molecule, which is expressed in 20% of Caucasians. The second epitope is also encoded by MAGE-1, -2, and -6. Our procedure should be applicable to other proteins for the identification of new tumor-specific antigens presented by HLA class II molecules. The knowledge of such antigens will be useful for evaluation of the immune response of cancer patients immunized with proteins or with recombinant viruses carrying entire genes coding for tumor antigens. The use of antigenic peptides presented by class II in addition to peptides presented by class I may also improve the efficacy of therapeutic antitumor vaccination. (+info)
Calreticulin, a peptide-binding chaperone of the endoplasmic reticulum, elicits tumor- and peptide-specific immunity.
(7/5439)
Calreticulin (CRT), a peptide-binding heat shock protein (HSP) of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), has been shown previously to associate with peptides transported into the ER by transporter associated with antigen processing (Spee, P., and J. Neefjes. 1997. Eur. J. Immunol. 27: 2441-2449). Our studies show that CRT preparations purified from tumors elicit specific immunity to the tumor used as the source of CRT but not to an antigenically distinct tumor. The immunogenicity is attributed to the peptides associated with the CRT molecule and not to the CRT molecule per se. It is further shown that CRT molecules can be complexed in vitro to unglycosylated peptides and used to elicit peptide-specific CD8(+) T cell response in spite of exogenous administration. These characteristics of CRT closely resemble those of HSPs gp96, hsp90, and hsp70, although CRT has no apparent structural homologies to them. (+info)
Maturation, activation, and protection of dendritic cells induced by double-stranded RNA.
(8/5439)
The initiation of an immune response is critically dependent on the activation of dendritic cells (DCs). This process is triggered by surface receptors specific for inflammatory cytokines or for conserved patterns characteristic of infectious agents. Here we show that human DCs are activated by influenza virus infection and by double-stranded (ds)RNA. This activation results not only in increased antigen presentation and T cell stimulatory capacity, but also in resistance to the cytopathic effect of the virus, mediated by the production of type I interferon, and upregulation of MxA. Because dsRNA stimulates both maturation and resistance, DCs can serve as altruistic antigen-presenting cells capable of sustaining viral antigen production while acquiring the capacity to trigger naive T cells and drive polarized T helper cell type 1 responses. (+info)