Antigen therapy of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis selectively induces apoptosis of pathogenic T cells

Denise Tischner1, Andreas Weishaupt, Jens van den Brandt

  • 1Institute for Virology and Immunobiology, University of Würzburg, Versbacher Strasse 7, 97078 Würzburg, and Department of Neurology, St. Josef-Hospital, University of Bochum, Germany.

Administration of high-dose myelin antigen induces massive T cell apoptosis in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) but the nature of the target cells remains elusive. Here we have used a cell line established in eGFP-transgenic Lewis rats to distinguish between pathogenic and bystander T cells in adoptive transfer EAE. Intravenous application of gpMBP strongly reduced the amount of encephalitogenic cells in spinal cord and spleen while the number of the other T cells remained constant. This could be attributed to their differential sensitivity to apoptosis. Thus, antigen therapy selectively targets pathogenic T cells and should therefore limit potential adverse effects.

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