Microbiota: dual-faceted player in experimental colitis
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Updated: Jun 3, 2026

Induction of Intestinal Inflammation by Adoptive Transfer of CBir1 TCR Transgenic CD4+ T Cells to Immunodeficient Mice
Published on: December 16, 2021
Ting Feng1, Charles O Elson, Yingzi Cong
1Department of Microbiology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA.
Abstract:
We have recently demonstrated that microbiota stimulation of innate immune pathways is required for T cell spontaneous proliferation and chronic intestinal inflammation. Microbiota promoted spontaneous proliferation of T cells by activating dendritic cells to produce interleukin (IL)-6 via a TLR/Myd88-dependent pathway. Although both CBir1-specific Tcr transgenic (CBir1 Tg) T cells, which are specific for an immunodominant microbiota antigen and OT-II T cells, which are specific for the model antigen ovalbumin, underwent spontaneous proliferation, only CBir1 Tg T cells but not OT-II T cells induced colitis in specific pathogen-free RAG(-/-) mice. Blockade of il-6 or il-6-mediated spontaneous proliferation of CBir1 Tg T cells abrogated colitis induction in this adoptive transfer model. Our data reveal that microbiota serves as a natural adjuvant for T cell spontaneous proliferation and development of chronic intestinal inflammation and that both microbiota stimulation of innate immune cells with subsequent T cell spontaneous proliferation and microbiota antigen activation of antigen-specific Tcr are required for the induction of experimental colitis.
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