Anergic cells generated by blocking CD28 and CD40 costimulatory pathways in vitro ameliorate collagen induced
Ling Li1, Houping Wang, Bin Wang
1Department of Histology and Embryology, Qingdao University Medical College, Qingdao, Shandong, China.
Abstract:
Collagen type II induced arthritis is an experimental model for studying the pathological mechanisms of therapeutic agents for human rheumatoid arthritis. In this study, we have investigated the effects of anergic cells on the development and disease progression of CIA. Anergic cells inhibited the proliferative response to collagen II primed lymphocytes, whereas the supernatant from anergic cell culture had no suppressive effect. Administration of anergic cells reduced the clinical score of CIA and ameliorated the development of CIA. The messenger RNA levels of IL-2 and IFN-gamma were significantly decreased, whereas mRNA levels of IL-4, IL-10 and TGF-beta showed no significant differences. A decrease in the collagen-specific Th1 associated IgG(2a) response was observed, whereas IgG(1) was unaffected. This effective treatment is associated with a reduction in IFN-gamma production and through cell-cell contact. Our results suggest that anergic cells may be beneficial for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.
