Developmental biology of the dendritic cell system

To determine whether an imbalance of dendritic cell subsets might contribute to diminished adaptive host responses observed in newborn infants. It was hypothesized that the proportion of lymphoid dendritic cells would be greater than that of myeloid dendritic cells in cord blood.

To investigate this, dendritic cell subsets were evaluated in whole cord blood by flow cytometry. Circulating dendritic cells were also isolated from cord blood based on CD1c and BDCA-2 expression. Myeloid dendritic cells were also obtained by culturing cord and adult blood monocytes. Surface phenotypes of these cells were determined by flow cytometry using monoclonal antibodies directed against lineage, major histocompatibility, adhesion, co-stimulation and cytokine receptor molecules. Antigen-presenting functions of dendritic cell subsets were determined by mixed leukocyte reactions.

Circulating myeloid dendritic cells were higher in cord blood than previously reported in adult blood, whereas lymphoid dendritic cell numbers were similar between cord and adult blood. Expression of CD11c, CD45RA and CD45RO did not accurately differentiate between dendritic cell subsets circulating in cord blood. Fresh and culture-derived cord blood myeloid dendritic cells stimulated adult allogeneic leukocyte proliferation, while lymphoid dendritic cells were less effective inducers of an adult allogeneic leukocyte response. Culture-derived dendritic cells induced modest autologous cord blood leukocyte proliferation, but freshly isolated myeloid and lymphoid dendritic cells did not stimulated autologous leukocytes.

Contrary to the hypothesis, an imbalance in the ratio of circulating myeloid to lymphoid dendritic cell subsets does not exist and, therefore, does not contribute to diminished adaptive immune responses in newborn infants.