Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 4, 2026

Mouse Naïve CD4+ T Cell Isolation and In vitro Differentiation into T Cell Subsets
Published on: April 16, 2015
IL-4 Derived from Non-T Cells Induces Basophil- and IL-3-independent Th2 Immune Responses
Sohee Kim1, Hajime Karasuyama2, Angel F Lopez3
1Department of Immunology, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.
Abstract:
How Th2 immunity develops in vivo remains obscure. Basophils have been considered key innate cells producing IL-4, a cytokine essential for Th2 immunity. Increasing evidence suggests that basophils are dispensable for the initiation of Th2 immunity. In this study, we revisited the role of basophils in Th2 immune responses induced by various types of adjuvants. Mice deficient in IL-3 or IL-3 receptor, in which basophil lymph node recruitment is completely abolished, fully developed wild type level Th2 CD4 T cell responses in response to parasite antigen or papain immunization. Similar finding was also observed in mice where basophils are inducibly ablated. Interestingly, IL-4-derived from non-T cells appeared to be critical for the generation of IL-4-producing CD4 T cells. Other Th2 promoting factors including IL-25 and thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) were dispensable. Therefore, our results suggest that IL-3- and basophil-independent in vivo Th2 immunity develops with the help of non-T cell-derived IL-4, offering an additional mechanism by which Th2 type immune responses arise in vivo.
Related Concept Videos
T Cell Types and Functions
Th1 cells stimulate dendritic cells to express necessary co-stimulatory molecules on their surfaces for...
Cells of the Adaptive Immune Response
B Cell Activation and Differentiation
When naive B cells encounter a specific antigen that can bind to the B cell receptor (BCR) on their surface, they undergo sensitization to respond to the antigen's presence. Sensitization begins with...
Differentiation of Common Myeloid Progenitor Cells
T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection
Naive T cells that have not yet encountered an antigen express two primary CD...
Development of Immunocompetence
The initial cells that migrate from the fetal thymus settle within the skin and epithelial tissues lining the mouth, digestive tract, and in females, the uterus and vagina. These cells, including skin-based dendritic cells, serve as antigen-presenting cells, playing a key role in T cell activation.
Subsequent T...

