Scientific Resources

Class I HLA molecules mark infected cells for immune targeting by presenting pathogen-encoded peptides on the cell surface. Characterization of viral peptides unique to infected cells is important for understanding CD8(+) T cell responses and for the development of T cell-based immunotherapies. Having previously reported a series of West Nile virus (WNV) epitopes that are naturally presented by HLA-A*02:01,in this study we generated TCR mimic (TCRm) mAbs to three of these peptide/HLA complexes-the immunodominant SVG9 (E protein),the subdominant SLF9 (NS4B protein),and the immunorecessive YTM9 (NS3 protein)-and used these TCRm mAbs to stain WNV-infected cell lines and primary APCs. TCRm staining of WNV-infected cells demonstrated that the immunorecessive YTM9 appeared several hours earlier and at 5- to 10-fold greater density than the more immunogenic SLF9 and SVG9 ligands,respectively. Moreover,staining following inhibition of the TAP demonstrated that all three viral ligands were presented in a TAP-dependent manner despite originating from different cellular compartments. To our knowledge,this study represents the first use of TCRm mAbs to define the kinetics and magnitude of HLA presentation for a series of epitopes encoded by one virus,and the results depict a pattern whereby individual epitopes differ considerably in abundance and availability. The observations that immunodominant ligands can be found at lower levels and at later time points after infection suggest that a reevaluation of the factors that combine to shape T cell reactivity may be warranted. View Publication

Induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells have an enormous potential for physiological studies. A novel protocol was developed combining the derivation of iPS from peripheral blood with an optimized directed differentiation to cardiomyocytes and a subsequent metabolic selection. The human iPS cells were retrovirally dedifferentiated from activated T cells. The subsequent optimized directed differentiation protocol yielded 30-45% cardiomyocytes at day 16 of differentiation. The derived cardiomyocytes expressed appropriate structural markers like cardiac troponin T,$\$-actinin and myosin light chain 2 (MLC2V). In a subsequent metabolic selection with lactate,the cardiomyocytes content could be increased to more than 90%. Loss of cardiomyocytes during metabolic selection were less than 50%,whereas alternative surface antibody-based selection procedures resulted in loss of up to 80% of cardiomyocytes. Electrophysiological characterization confirmed the typical cardiac features and the presence of ventricular,atrial and nodal-like action potentials within the derived cardiomyocyte population. Our combined and optimized protocol is highly robust and applicable for scalable cardiac differentiation. It provides a simple and cost-efficient method without expensive equipment for generating large numbers of highly purified,functional cardiomyocytes. It will further enhance the applicability of iPS cell-derived cardiomyocytes for disease modeling,drug discovery,and regenerative medicine. View Publication

We identify the tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily 25 (TNFRSF25)/TNFSF15 pair as critical trigger for allergic lung inflammation,which is a cardinal feature of asthma. TNFRSF25 (TNFR25) signals are required to exert T helper cell 2 (Th2) effector function in Th2-polarized CD4 cells and co-stimulate interleukin (IL)-13 production by glycosphingolipid-activated NKT cells. In vivo,antibody blockade of TNFSF15 (TL1A),which is the ligand for TNFR25,inhibits lung inflammation and production of Th2 cytokines such as IL-13,even when administered days after airway antigen exposure. Similarly,blockade of TNFR25 by a dominant-negative (DN) transgene,DN TNFR25,confers resistance to lung inflammation in mice. Allergic lung inflammation-resistant,NKT-deficient mice become susceptible upon adoptive transfer of wild-type NKT cells,but not after transfer of DN TNFR25 transgenic NKT cells. The TNFR25/TL1A pair appears to provide an early signal for Th2 cytokine production in the lung,and therefore may be a drug target in attempts to attenuate lung inflammation in asthmatics. View Publication

HIV infection leads to a state of chronic immune activation and progressive deterioration in immune function,manifested most recognizably by the progressive depletion of CD4+ T cells. A substantial percentage of natural killer (NK) cells from patients with HIV infection are activated and express the natural cytotoxicity receptor (NCR) NKp44. Here we show that a cellular ligand for NKp44 (NKp44L) is expressed during HIV-1 infection and is correlated with both the progression of CD4+ T cell depletion and the increase of viral load. CD4+ T cells expressing this ligand are highly sensitive to the NK lysis activity mediated by NKp44+ NK cells. The expression of NKp44L is induced by the linear motif NH2-SWSNKS-COOH of the HIV-1 envelope gp41 protein. This highly conserved motif appears critical to the sharp increase in NK lysis of CD4+ T cells from HIV-infected patients. These studies strongly suggest that induction of NKp44L plays a key role in the lysis of CD4+ T cells by activated NK cells in HIV infection and consequently provide a framework for considering how HIV-1 may use NK cell immune surveillance to trigger CD4+ T cells. Understanding this mechanism may help to develop future therapeutic strategies and vaccines against HIV-1 infection. View Publication

Reduced-intensity conditioning regimens for transplant recipients have heightened awareness of immunologic resistance to allogeneic bone marrow transplants (BMT). Although T cell-mediated cytotoxicity has been assumed to play a role in the resistance against donor allogeneic hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell grafts,several studies have reported relatively unimpaired resistance by recipients who lack perforin,Fas ligand (FasL),and other cytotoxic mediators. This study compared the early kinetics of T cell-mediated resistance in B6 (H2b) cytotoxically normal versus deficient recipients after transplantation with major histocompatibility complex-matched,minor histocompatibility antigen (MiHA)-mismatched allogeneic marrow grafts. Wild-type B6 or cytotoxic double-deficient perforin-/-/ gld+/+ (B6-cdd) mice were sensitized against major histocompatibility complex-matched BALB.B or C3H.SW (H2b) MiHA and transplanted with a high dose (1 ?? 107) of T cell-depleted bone marrow. CD8 T memory cells were shown to be present in recipients before BMT,and anti-CD8 monoclonal antibody infusion abolished resistance,thus demonstrating that CD8 T cells are the host effector population. Donor-committed and high proliferative potential progenitor numbers were markedly diminished by 48 hours after transplantation in both wild-type B6 and B6-cdd anti-donor MiHA-sensitized recipients. These observations indicate that the resistance pathway used in the cytotoxic deficient mice was both potent and rapidly induced - consistent with a CD8 memory T-cell response. To examine the role of Tumor necrosis factor-like weak inducer of apoptosis (TWEAK)- and TL1A-mediated cytotoxicity in this strong resistance,newly generated monoclonal antibodies specific for these ligands were administered to B6-cdd recipients sensitized to donor antigens. Recipients of syngeneic B6-gfp bone marrow exhibited significant donor colony-forming unit numbers after BMT. In contrast,low or absent colony-forming unit levels were detected in allogeneic recipients,including those that lacked perforin and FasL and that received anti-TWEAK,anti-tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand,and anti-TL1A monoclonal antibodies. These findings extend previous observations by demonstrating the existence of a rapidly effected resistance pathway mediated by memory CD8 effector T cells independent of the 2 major pathways of cytotoxicity. Together with previous findings,these results support the notion that effector cells derived from memory CD8 T-cell populations can mediate strong resistance against donor allogeneic MiHA-disparate hematopoietic engraftment by using a mechanism that is independent of the contribution of perforin,FasL,and the known death ligand receptor pathways. ?? 2005 American Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation. View Publication

Expression of the nuclear hormone receptor peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPARalpha) in resting lymphocytes was recently established,although the physiologic role(s) played by this nuclear hormone receptor in these cell types remains unresolved. In this study,we used CD4(+) T cells isolated from PPARalpha(-/-) and wild-type mice,as well as cell lines that constitutively express PPARalpha,in experiments designed to evaluate the role of this hormone receptor in the regulation of T cell function. We report that activated CD4(+) T cells lacking PPARalpha produce increased levels of IFN-gamma,but significantly lower levels of IL-2 when compared with activated wild-type CD4(+) T cells. Furthermore,we demonstrate that PPARalpha regulates the expression of these cytokines by CD4(+) T cells in part,through its ability to negatively regulate the transcription of T-bet. The induction of T-bet expression in CD4(+) T cells was determined to be positively influenced by p38 mitogen-activated protein (MAP) kinase activation,and the presence of unliganded PPARalpha effectively suppressed the phosphorylation of p38 MAP kinase. The activation of PPARalpha with highly specific ligands relaxed its capacity to suppress p38 MAP kinase phosphorylation and promoted T-bet expression. These results demonstrate a novel DNA-binding independent and agonist-controlled regulatory influence by the nuclear hormone receptor PPARalpha. View Publication