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Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Natural Killer (NK) and CAR-NK Cell Expansion Method using Membrane Bound-IL-21-Modified B Cell Line
Published on: February 8, 2022
IL-21 enhances dendritic cell ability to induce interferon-gamma production by natural killer T cells
Masanori Maeda1, Yoshiki Yanagawa, Kazuya Iwabuchi
1Division of Immunobiology, Institute for Genetic Medicine, Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Graduate School of Medicine, Hokkaido University, West 7 North 15, Sapporo 060-8638, Japan.
Abstract:
Interleukin (IL)-21 shows pleiotropic effects on the proliferation, differentiation, and effector functions of leukocytes. However, the influence of IL-21 on dendritic cell (DC) activation of natural killer T (NKT) cells has not yet been elucidated. In the present study, we examined the effect of IL-21 on murine myeloid DC ability to induce NKT cell production of interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and IL-4. Pretreatment of DCs with IL-21 and alpha-galactosylceramide (alpha-GalCer), an NKT cell-specific ligand, resulted in the enhanced ability of the DCs to induce NKT cell production of IFN-gamma but not IL-4 in vitro compared to DCs pretreated with alpha-GalCer alone. A similar effect of IL-21 was observed when DCs pretreated with IL-21 and alpha-GalCer in vitro were transferred into naïve mice. Direct administration of IL-21 to the mice also enhanced IFN-gamma production after injection of alpha-GalCer. Thus, IL-21 can modify DC ability to selectively enhance NKT cell production of IFN-gamma upon stimulation with alpha-GalCer.
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