Depletion of gammadelta T cells exacerbates murine adriamycin nephropathy

It has been reported that the presence of gammadelta T cells in kidney is associated with kidney damage in human IgA nephropathy and in rat models of chronic renal injury, including Adriamycin nephropathy (AN), but the functional role of gammadelta T cells in this setting is unknown. This study examined the functional role of gammadelta T cells in tissue injury in a murine model of AN. Murine AN was induced in BALB/c mice by a single injection of Adriamycin. gammadelta T cells as a proportion of CD3(+) T cells were significantly increased in AN kidneys (16.8 +/- 3.9%) but not in lymph nodes (1.3 +/- 0.8%; P < 0.001). The proportion of gammadelta T cells in AN kidney correlated positively with serum creatinine and glomerular sclerosis. The Vgammadelta T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire in kidney showed expansion of a subset of cells that expressed Vgamma6/Vdelta1 genes and that used canonical TCR Vgamma6/Vdelta1 sequences in the CDR3 region of the TCR. gammadelta T cells that were sorted from the kidneys expressed TGF-beta but not IL-4, IL-10, or IFN-gamma. gammadelta T cells also expressed the activating receptor NKG2D and the NKG2D adaptor molecule DAP12. RAE-1, a ligand of NKG2D, was upregulated in AN kidney. Depletion of gammadelta T cells using anti-TCR gammadelta antibody resulted in worsening of serum creatinine, glomerulosclerosis, and interstitial inflammation. These studies indicate the involvement of the gammadelta T cell in innate recognition and regulation of inflammation in AN.