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Published on: April 18, 2016
slanDCs/M-DC8+ cells constitute a distinct subset of dendritic cells in human tonsils [corrected]
Alessandra Micheletti1, Giulia Finotti1, Federica Calzetti1
1Department of Medicine, Section of General Pathology, University of Verona, Verona, Italy.
Human blood dendritic cells (DCs) include three main distinct subsets, namely the CD1c+ and CD141+ myeloid DCs (mDCs) and the CD303+ plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs). More recently, a population of slan/M-DC8+ cells, also known as "slanDCs", has been described in blood and detected even in inflamed secondary lymphoid organs and non-lymphoid tissues. Nevertheless, hallmarks of slan/M-DC8+ cells in tissues are poorly defined. Herein, we report a detailed characterization of the phenotype and function of slan/M-DC8+ cells present in human tonsils. We found that tonsil slan/M-DC8+ cells represent a unique DC cell population, distinct from their circulating counterpart and also from all other tonsil DC and monocyte/macrophage subsets. Phenotypically, slan/M-DC8+ cells in tonsils display a CD11c+HLA-DR+CD14+CD11bdim/negCD16dim/negCX3CR1dim/neg marker repertoire, while functionally they exhibit an efficient antigen presentation capacity and a constitutive secretion of TNFα. Notably, such DC phenotype and functions are substantially reproduced by culturing blood slan/M-DC8+ cells in tonsil-derived conditioned medium (TDCM), further supporting the hypothesis of a full DC-like differentiation program occurring within the tonsil microenvironment. Taken together, our data suggest that blood slan/M-DC8+ cells are immediate precursors of a previously unrecognizedcompetent DC subset in tonsils, and pave the way for further characterization of slan/M-DC8+ cells in other tissues.
Human blood dendritic cells (DCs) include three main distinct subsets, namely the CD1c+ and CD141+ myeloid DCs (mDCs) and the CD303+ plasmacytoid DCs (pDCs). More recently, a population of slan/M-DC8+ cells, also known as "slanDCs", has been described in blood and detected even in inflamed secondary lymphoid organs and non-lymphoid tissues. Nevertheless, hallmarks of slan/M-DC8+ cells in tissues are poorly defined. Herein, we report a detailed characterization of the phenotype and function of slan/M-DC8+ cells present in human tonsils. We found that tonsil slan/M-DC8+ cells represent a unique DC cell population, distinct from their circulating counterpart and also from all other tonsil DC and monocyte/macrophage subsets. Phenotypically, slan/M-DC8+ cells in tonsils display a CD11c+HLA-DR+CD14+CD11bdim/negCD16dim/negCX3CR1dim/neg marker repertoire, while functionally they exhibit an efficient antigen presentation capacity and a constitutive secretion of TNFα. Notably, such DC phenotype and functions are substantially reproduced by culturing blood slan/M-DC8+ cells in tonsil-derived conditioned medium (TDCM), further supporting the hypothesis of a full DC-like differentiation program occurring within the tonsil microenvironment. Taken together, our data suggest that blood slan/M-DC8+ cells are immediate precursors of a previously unrecognizedcompetent DC subset in tonsils, and pave the way for further characterization of slan/M-DC8+ cells in other tissues.
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