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Differential induction of programmed cell death in CD8+ and CD4+ T cells by the B subunit of cholera toxin
B Yankelevich1, V A Soldatenkov, J Hodgson
1Bone Marrow Transplantation Program, Lombardi Cancer Center, Department of Radiation Medicine Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, 20007, USA.
Abstract:
We have recently demonstrated that a short-term treatment of parental splenocytes with the B subunit of cholera toxin (CT-B) abrogates the development of acute GVHD in F1 hybrid mice transplanted with these cells. In order to obtain better insight into the mechanism of the action of CT-B, we studied the effect of CT-B on survival of purified murine T cells and their subsets. We show that treatment with B subunit stimulates apoptosis in T cells, detectable following incubation in vitro. Although apoptosis was noticed in both CD8+ and CD4+ T cell subsets, the treatment preferentially stimulates programmed cell death (PCD) in CD8+ population. Thus, immunosuppressive action of CT-B in vivo may be in part due to its ability to eliminate CD8+ T cells.