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Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Mouse Naïve CD4+ T Cell Isolation and In vitro Differentiation into T Cell Subsets
Published on: April 16, 2015
Mast cells counteract regulatory T-cell suppression through interleukin-6 and OX40/OX40L axis toward Th17-cell
Silvia Piconese1, Giorgia Gri, Claudio Tripodo
1Molecular Immunology Unit, Department of Experimental Oncology, Fondazione Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico Istituto Nazionale dei Tumori, Milan, Italy.
Abstract:
The development of inflammatory diseases implies inactivation of regulatory T (Treg) cells through mechanisms that still are largely unknown. Here we showed that mast cells (MCs), an early source of inflammatory mediators, are able to counteract Treg inhibition over effector T cells. To gain insight into the molecules involved in their interplay, we set up an in vitro system in which all 3 cellular components were put in contact. Reversal of Treg suppression required T cell-derived interleukin-6 (IL-6) and the OX40/OX40L axis. In the presence of activated MCs, concomitant abundance of IL-6 and paucity of Th1/Th2 cytokines skewed Tregs and effector T cells into IL-17-producing T cells (Th17). In vivo analysis of lymph nodes hosting T-cell priming in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis revealed activated MCs, Tregs, and Th17 cells displaying tight spatial interactions, further supporting the occurrence of an MC-mediated inhibition of Treg suppression in the establishment of Th17-mediated inflammatory responses.
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