Transferred antigen-specific T(H)17 but not T(H)1 cells induce crescentic glomerulonephritis in mice

To explore the role of antigen-specific CD4(+) T cells in glomerulonephritis, we administered ovalbumin 323-339 peptide conjugated to glomerular-binding polyclonal antibody and induced disease in RAG1(-/-) mice with CD4(+) T cells from OT2 × RAG1(-/-) mice. These OT2 × RAG1(-/-) mice have a transgenic T-cell receptor specific for this peptide. When CD4(+) T cells were primed in vivo, crescentic glomerulonephritis developed after 21 days in mice given peptide-conjugated glomerular-binding antibody but not unconjugated antibody control. We then investigated the relative roles of T(H)1 and T(H)17 cells, using Fab(2) fragments of glomerular-binding antibody to exclude a role for antibody in this model. T cells from OT2 × RAG1(-/-) mice were polarized in vitro, and T(H)1 or T(H)17 cell lines were injected into mice that were also given peptide-conjugated Fab(2) or unconjugated Fab(2) control, giving four experimental groups. After 21 days crescentic glomerulonephritis was seen in mice receiving T(H)17 cells and peptide-conjugated Fab(2) but in none of the other three groups. These results suggest that T(H)17 but not T(H)1 cells can induce crescentic glomerulonephritis.