<p>T follicular helper (Tfh) cells and T follicular regulatory (Tfr) cells play critical roles in regulating the activity of the germinal center (GC), which is essential for the generation of high-affinity antibodies. In the GC, Tfh cells help B cells to&#xa0;proliferate and to&#xa0;differentiate into memory B cells and long-lived plasma cells. In contrast, Tfr cells, a specialized subset of regulatory T cells (Tregs), modulate the humoral immune response by suppressing excessive or autoreactive B-cell activity. Here, we established an in vitro differentiation protocol for mouse CD4⁺ T cells that yielded CXCR5⁺FoxP3⁺ Tfr cells that exhibited a Bcl6<sup>hi</sup>PD-1<sup>hi</sup>CD25<sup>lo</sup>GITR<sup>int</sup> phenotype and were distinct from Treg and Tfh cells. Functionally, in vitro-generated Tfr cells potently suppressed Tfh cell-driven B-cell class switching to IgG1 and downregulated the expression of B-cell costimulatory ligands. While in vitro-generated <i>Bcl6</i>-deficient Tfh cells were impaired in providing help to B cells for efficient class switching to IgG1, in vitro-generated <i>Bcl6</i>-deficient Tfr cells failed to inhibit Tfh cell-driven B-cell class switching to IgG1. Mechanistically, we showed that Tfr cells emerged from FoxP3<sup>+</sup> precursors in low-IL-2 environments through a TGF-β- and c-Maf-dependent pathway, allowing for reprogramming and reinforcement of the follicular regulatory cell program in CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells in vitro.</p>

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TGF-β and IL-2 differentially shape T follicular regulatory cell differentiation and stability in vitro

  • Luisa Bach,
  • Yinshui Chang,
  • Olin Arteaga Transito,
  • Mohammadamin Ghasemi,
  • Lisa Maria Steinheuer,
  • Teresa Steffen,
  • Elena De Domenico,
  • Thomas Ulas,
  • F. Thomas Wunderlich,
  • Marc D. Beyer,
  • Kevin Thurley,
  • Dirk Baumjohann

摘要

T follicular helper (Tfh) cells and T follicular regulatory (Tfr) cells play critical roles in regulating the activity of the germinal center (GC), which is essential for the generation of high-affinity antibodies. In the GC, Tfh cells help B cells to proliferate and to differentiate into memory B cells and long-lived plasma cells. In contrast, Tfr cells, a specialized subset of regulatory T cells (Tregs), modulate the humoral immune response by suppressing excessive or autoreactive B-cell activity. Here, we established an in vitro differentiation protocol for mouse CD4⁺ T cells that yielded CXCR5⁺FoxP3⁺ Tfr cells that exhibited a Bcl6hiPD-1hiCD25loGITRint phenotype and were distinct from Treg and Tfh cells. Functionally, in vitro-generated Tfr cells potently suppressed Tfh cell-driven B-cell class switching to IgG1 and downregulated the expression of B-cell costimulatory ligands. While in vitro-generated Bcl6-deficient Tfh cells were impaired in providing help to B cells for efficient class switching to IgG1, in vitro-generated Bcl6-deficient Tfr cells failed to inhibit Tfh cell-driven B-cell class switching to IgG1. Mechanistically, we showed that Tfr cells emerged from FoxP3+ precursors in low-IL-2 environments through a TGF-β- and c-Maf-dependent pathway, allowing for reprogramming and reinforcement of the follicular regulatory cell program in CD4+ T cells in vitro.