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Tolerant T cells display impaired trafficking ability
Vincenzo Mirenda1, Owain Millington, Robert I Lechler
1Department of Immunology, Division of Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
European Journal of Immunology
|June 11, 2005
Summary
Tolerant T cells, or anergic T lymphocytes, lose their ability to migrate. This localization at the induction site enhances the efficiency and control of immune regulation.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Cellular Biology
- T-cell immunology
Background:
- Anergic T lymphocytes exhibit reduced migratory capacity in vitro.
- This suggests that anergic T cells may remain at their generation site for regulatory functions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate T lymphocyte trafficking and motility after in vivo tolerance induction.
- To understand the in vivo behavior of tolerant T cells and their interaction with other immune cells.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a non-deletional negative vaccination model with xenoantigens and dendritic cells (DC).
- Employed an oral tolerance model to track ovalbumin-specific TCR-transgenic T cells.
- Assessed T cell migration through syngeneic endothelial cell monolayers in vitro and ex vivo.
Main Results:
- Tolerant T cells localized in lymph nodes colonized by tolerogenic DCs, unlike primed T cells which trafficked efficiently.
- T cells lost migratory ability through endothelial cell monolayers post-tolerance induction.
- Tolerant T cells inhibited the migration of responsive T cells in an antigen-independent manner.
Conclusions:
- Hyporesponsive T cells remain localized at the site of tolerance induction in vivo.
- This localization facilitates the exertion of anti-inflammatory properties by tolerant T cells.
- This mechanism likely improves the efficiency and controllability of immune regulation.