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Original Article |
rfoerst{at}mdc-berlin.de
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Key Words: CXC chemokine receptor 5 CC chemokine receptor 7 T cell homing germinal centers T helper cells
In contrast to B cells, recently entered T cells do not migrate to follicles but stay in close contact with antigen-presenting dendritic cells (DCs) to screen these cells for presented peptides recognized by the T cell antigen receptor. In most cases, no specific peptide is encountered and the majority of T cells leave the LN within a few hours. However, if T cells are activated by antigen-presenting cells, a proliferation and differentiation program is initiated giving rise to effector T cells either migrating to places of inflammation or to the B cell follicles to participate in the formation of germinal centers (GCs [9, 10]). A fraction of activated T cells develop into memory cells, allowing a fast and effective immune response once rechallenged with the same antigen 11. Based on the expression of the chemokine homing receptor CCR7, it has been suggested that T memory cells fall into one of two pools: CCR7– effector memory T cells (TEM) endowed to migrate to inflamed tissue, and CCR7+ central memory T cells (TCM) with the potential to home to lymphoid organs 12. We now show that CXCR5+ Th cells represent a novel subpopulation of Th cells that localize to B cell follicles and GCs to provide the support that B cells need during their differentiation program in order to efficiently produce Igs.
Immunohistology and Flow Cytometry.
Cytokine Production.
Ab Production.
Memory Response.
CCR7 Downregulation.
Determination of Inducible Costimulator Expression by Reverse Transcription PCR.
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Introduction
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Abstract
Introduction
Materials and Methods
Results
Discussion
References
To efficiently combat invading pathogens, lymphocytes continuously circulate through lymphoid and nonlymphoid tissue to mount an adaptive immune response. Lymphocyte trafficking does not occur at random, but is subjected to tightly controlled mechanisms allowing selective entry of lymphocytes into secondary lymphoid organs and into functional compartments within these organs 1. Recent data provide strong experimental evidence that chemokines and their receptors are mandatory for the homeostatic regulation of lymphocyte trafficking and functional compartmentalization of lymphoid organs 2. The majority of B and T lymphocytes have to interact with specialized high endothelial venules (HEVs) and pass through them in order to enter lymphoid organs. We recently demonstrated that CC chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7) is indispensable for the migration of naive T cells through these venules. In addition, B cells exploit CCR7 to efficiently enter LNs and Peyer's patches 3. Once B cells are within lymphoid organs, they use CXC chemokine receptor 5 (CXCR5 [4]) to follow a follicular chemokine gradient of B lymphocyte chemoattractant (BLC [5]), which guides them to the B cell–rich follicles. BLC is a ligand for CXCR5 which, according to a new classification of chemokines, has been renamed to CXCL13 6. In addition to the chemokine system, various members of the lymphotoxin (LT)/TNF family and their receptors were found to substantially participate in lymphoid organ organogenesis 7. Their effects on regular lymphoid organ architecture can be attributed, at least in part, to their ability to induce the expression of various chemokines in lymphoid organs including BLC, secondary lymphoid tissue chemokine (SLC), and EBV-induced molecule 1 ligand chemokine (ELC 8). In addition, it was recently shown that chemokines can induce a positive feedback loop on LT expression. Data derived from BLC gene-targeted mice demonstrate that BLC induces B cells to upregulate membrane-bound LT
1β2, a cytokine known to induce follicular dendritic cell (FDC) development and the expression of BLC 5. Taken together, these data demonstrate a pivotal role for CXCR5 and its ligand in directing FDCs and B cells to form primary and secondary B cell follicles.
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Materials and Methods
Top
Abstract
Introduction
Materials and Methods
Results
Discussion
References
Abs.
In addition to Abs described elsewhere 13, mAbs directed against CD95, IL-2, and IFN-
, and mAbs specific for various human Igs were purchased from BD PharMingen. mAbs specific for human BLC/CXCL13 and ELC/CCL19 were obtained from R&D Systems; the anti-CCR7 mAb (clone 3D12) was produced in our laboratory and has been described previously 12.
Flow cytometry and immunohistology were done as described previously 413. In addition, immunohistology using anti-BLC/CXCL13 mAb and anti-ELC/CCL19 was done by enhancing signals with the tyramide signal amplification system (NEN Life Science Products/Dupont).
PBLs were isolated by Ficoll density centrifugation and stained with anti-CD4–FITC, anti-CD45RO–PE, and anti-CXCR5–biotin/streptavidin–Cychrome (clone RF8B2). Using flow cytometry (FACS VantageTM; Becton Dickinson), CD4+CD45RO+ cells were sorted into two fractions: CXCR5– and CXCR5+ cells. Sorted cells were cultured in RPMI/10% FCS (105 cells/500 µl) and stimulated with plastic-bound anti-CD3 mAb (20 µg/ml). After 24 h, cell culture supernatants were collected and stored at –80°C. The presence of various cytokines within the supernatants was analyzed using various cytokine-specific ELISAs (Endogen). Detection of intracellular cytokines was done as described elsewhere 12.
As described for peripheral blood T cells above, CD4+CD45RO+CXCR5+ and CD4+CD45RO+CXCR5– cells were also isolated from tonsils. In addition, CD19+ B cells were isolated from the same tonsils by means of flow cytometry sorting. To assess the capability of both T cell subsets to support Ig secretion and isotype switching, B cells were cultured either alone or in the presence of the same number of sorted T cells for 11 d. Supernatants were collected and analyzed for the presence of various Ig isotypes using pairs of isotype-specific Abs and ELISA (BD PharMingen).
Using Ficoll, PBLs were isolated from individuals who had not been immunized with tetanus toxin (TT) during the last 2 yr. Cells were plated for 2 h in RPMI/5% auto- logous serum. Nonadherent lymphocytes were withdrawn, and adherent macrophages were collected, irradiated (50 Gy), and stored on ice until further use. Lymphocytes were stained with CD4, CD45RO, and CXCR5 Abs and sorted into the two fractions described above. Sorted T cells were titrated and cocultured with irradiated autologous macrophages (100,000/well) in RPMI/5% autologous serum in the presence or absence of TT (1:800; Wyeth). In some experiments, sorted T cells were also cultured with irradiated heterologous macrophages. After 6 d of incubation, [3H]thymidine was added to the medium (0.025 µCi/well) for 18 h. Cells were harvested and the amount of incorporated [3H]thymidine was determined.
White blood cells (5 x 106/ml) were incubated at 37°C (RPMI/10% fetal bovine serum/5 mM Hepes, pH 7.4) in the presence or absence of 300 ng/ml of ELC/CCL19 (R&D Systems). After various incubation periods, aliquots were withdrawn, stored on ice, and stained with anti-CD4 and anti-CCR7 mAbs. Expression levels of CCR7 on CD4+ T cells were determined by flow cytometry.
Total RNA from CD4+CD45RO+ CXCR5+ cells was isolated with Trizol (Life Technologies). cDNA was generated with Superscript II reverse transcriptase (Boehringer) using random hexamer primers. Primers were designed based on the inducible costimulator (ICOS) cDNA sequence (sequence data available from EMBL/GenBank/DDBJ under accession no. AF218312). The PCR was performed using 5 U Taq polymerase, 1.5 mM MgCl, and 0.6 µM of each primer (primer A, 5'-TGCCATTCTCAGTTATCC; primer B, 5'-ACATGTATTCACCGTTAGG) in an amplifier (model 225; MJ Research) applying the following parameters: denaturation at 94°C for 4 min, and addition of Taq polymerase at 88°C followed by 35 amplification cycles with 15 s denaturation at 94°C, annealing at 55°C for 30 s, and a 1-min extension at 72°C. Using the cDNA as template, these primers generated a 298-bp product.
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Results
Top
Abstract
Introduction
Materials and Methods
Results
Discussion
References
Peripheral Blood CXCR5+ CD4 Cells Are a Subpopulation of TCM.
CXCR5 expression was studied on peripheral blood and tonsillar T cells. Flow cytometry on PBLs demonstrated that the vast majority of CD4+CXCR5+ cells coexpress CD45RO 13 and CCR7 (Fig. 1 A), thus identifying them as a subpopulation of the recently described TCM 12. In contrast, >50% of CD4+CXCR5+ cells isolated from tonsils lack CCR7, suggesting that most T cells downregulate CCR7 once they are within lymphoid organs (Fig. 1 B). As ligand-induced receptor internalization might contribute to this process, we exposed PBLs to ELC. As shown in Fig. 1 C, CCR7 gets downregulated on peripheral blood T cells to
50–60% of the initial levels. This observation suggests that in addition to ligand-induced receptor uptake, other mechanisms such as TCR activation contribute to CCR7 downregulation. When analyzing the expression of ELC within the tonsil, we found this chemokine expressed not only on DCs (not shown) as reported earlier 14, but also on the HEVs. High power magnification revealed that ELC polarizes to the luminal site of the HEVs (Fig. 1 D). This observation indicates that, in addition to SLC/CCL21, ELC/CCL19 may contribute to transendothelial migration.
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It has been recently demonstrated that ICOS, a novel member of the CD28 family of costimulatory molecules, is also highly expressed on Th cells located in follicles and GCs 17. Therefore, we were interested in whether CXCR5+ CD4 cells coexpress ICOS. Indeed, using reverse transcription PCR on sorted CD4+CD45RO+ CXCR5+ tonsillar cells, we found high levels of ICOS-specific transcripts in this cell population (Fig. 2 D). In addition, preliminary data obtained by flow cytometry applying ICOS-specific Abs (provided by Dr. Kroczek, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany) demonstrate a marked correlation between the expression of CXCR5 and ICOS.
CXCR5+ CD4 Cells Produce Few Cytokines but Support Ig Production.
As CXCR5+ CD4 cells express costimulatory molecules, we were interested to see whether CXCR5– and CXCR5+ helper cells produce different sets of cytokines. According to the expression of CXCR5, peripheral blood CD4+CD45RO+ cells were sorted into two fractions: CXCR5+ and CXCR5– cells. After a 24-h stimulation period the cytokine profile was analyzed. Within the scope of our experiments we noticed no differences with regard to IL-2 production. However, we observed decreased levels of IL-10, and found dramatically reduced levels of IFN-
, IL-5 (Fig. 3A and Fig. B), and IL-4 (not shown) in the CXCR5+ population compared with the CXCR5– fraction. These findings suggest that CD4+ CXCR5+ cells represent a non-Th1/Th2 subset of effector T cells that is involved in B cell help.
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10-fold increase in the production of IgA and IgG Abs. With regard to the production of IgM, differences between the two Th cell subsets were less obvious. Compared with B cell cultures without T cells, addition of CXCR5– CD4 cells induced a 5-fold increase in IgM, whereas addition of CXCR5+ cells yielded a 15-fold increase in the production of this isotype. These data suggest that CD4+CXCR5+ cells represent the classical Th cells supplying B cells with the costimulatory signals required for Ig production.
Memory CD4 Cells Are within the CXCR5– Fraction.
As nearly all CD4+CXCR5+ T cells coexpress CD45RO 13, a molecule found on memory T cells, we were interested in studying whether the expression of CXCR5 is associated with T cell memory. Memory function analysis was performed on sorted peripheral blood T cells derived from donors who had not been immunized with TT during the last 2 yr. Coculture of sorted T cells with irradiated autologous antigen-presenting cells loaded with TT revealed that memory cells were principally found within the CXCR5– fraction (Fig. 4 A). In contrast, both populations responded equally well to allogenic antigen-presenting cells (Fig. 4 B), demonstrating that CXCR5+ T cells have the capability to respond to foreign antigens. As these data suggest that CXCR5+ T cells might represent finally differentiated effector T cells prone to be removed by apoptosis, we stained tonsillar T cells with anti-CD95 mAb. Interestingly, 94% of the CD4+CXCR5+ cells expressed CD95, whereas <30% of the CD4+CXCR5– cells were associated with this molecule (Fig. 4 C). This observation indicates that CXCR5+ T cells might be particularly prone to die by apoptosis, which might help to explain why we found long-lived memory cells within the CXCR5– subset.
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In summary, this study adds weight to the notion that the pattern of expressed chemokine receptors functionally characterizes T cell populations 26. It was demonstrated that CXCR5 is expressed on T cells situated in GCs and follicles, which express costimulatory molecules (CD40L, ICOS) required for B cell maturation and survival. Based on the cytokines expressed, CXCR5+ T cells do not fall into the Th1/Th2 classification but represent an effector subset that is involved in B cell help.
As these cells show all characteristics required for efficient B cell help within lymphoid follicles, we suggest calling these cells "follicular B helper T cells" (TFH).
| Acknowledgments |
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Submitted: 21 August 2000
Revised: 6 October 2000
Accepted: 12 October 2000
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