Characterization of monocyte-derived dendritic cells from cats infected with feline immunodeficiency virus

Dendritic cells (DCs) are professional antigen presenting cells (APCs) that possess an extraordinary capacity to stimulate naïve T cells and initiate a primary immune response. To develop a DC-based immunotherapy for feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) infection, we carried out a study to characterize DCs from FIV-infected cats and compared the observations with those obtained from healthy controls. DCs were derived from adherent peripheral blood mononuclear cells that had been cultivated with recombinant feline interleukin 4, granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor and heat-inactivated autologous plasma. Various parameters, such as cell morphology, surface phenotype, endocytosis and mixed leukocyte reaction (MLR), were analyzed to characterize feline DCs. Monocyte-derived DCs from FIV-infected cats as well as those from healthy controls showed a dendritic appearance and expressed an APC-like phenotype (CD1c(+), CD80(+) and MHC class II(+)). However, the expression level of CD1a was variable in the DCs derived from FIV-infected cats, although this was not the case in the DCs derived from the healthy controls. DCs from the FIV-infected cats retained the ability to take up dextran via the mannose receptor and also showed an apparent MLR, indicating that these cells could be useful in immunotherapy. In this study, monocytes obtained from FIV-infected cats could differentiate into functional DCs, suggesting that they might be used in a DC-based immunotherapy against FIV infection.