Migration of antigen (Ag)-loaded dendritic cells (DCs) from sites of infection into draining lymphoid tissues is fundamental to the priming of T-cell immune responses. We evaluated monocyte-derived DCs (MoDCs) and peripheral blood DCs (PBDCs) to respond to proinflammatory mediators, CD40L, and intact bacteria. All classes of stimuli induced DC phenotypic maturation. However, for MoDCs, only prostaglandin E 2 (PGE 2 )-containing stimuli induced migratory-type DCs. Thus, immature MoDCs that encountered proinflammatory cytokines or CD40L or intact bacteria in the presence of PGE 2 acquired migratory capacity but secreted low levels of cytokines. Conversely, MoDCs that encountered pathogens or CD40L alone become nonmigratory cytokine-secreting cells (proinflammatory type). Interestingly, both migratoryand proinflammatory-type DCs expressed equivalent levels of chemokine receptors, suggesting that the role of PGE 2 was to switch on migratory function. We demonstrate that PGE 2 induces migration via the E-prostanoid 2/E-prostanoid 4 (EP 2 /EP 4 ) receptors and the cAMP pathway. Finally, migratory-type MoDCs stimulated T-cell proliferation and predominantly IL-2 secretion, whereas proinflammatory-type MoDCs induced IFN-␥ production. In contrast, CD1b/c ؉ PBDC rapidly acquired migratory capacity irrespective of the class of stimulus encountered and secreted low levels of cytokines. This suggests that not all mature stages of DCs are destined to migrate to lymphoid organs and that the sequence in which stimuli are encountered significantly affects which functions are expressed. Thus, certain immature DC subsets recruited from the resting precursor pool may have multiple functional fates that play distinct roles during the induction and effector phases of the immune response. These findings have important implications for the clinical utility

Evolutionary change in gene expression is generally considered to be a major driver of phenotypic differences between species. We investigated innate immune diversification by analyzing interspecies differences in the transcriptional responses of primary human and mouse macrophages to the Toll-like receptor (TLR)–4 agonist lipopolysaccharide (LPS). By using a custom platform permitting cross-species interrogation coupled with deep sequencing of mRNA 5′ ends, we identified extensive divergence in LPS-regulated orthologous gene expression between humans and mice (24% of orthologues were identified as “divergently regulated”). We further demonstrate concordant regulation of human-specific LPS target genes in primary pig macrophages. Divergently regulated orthologues were enriched for genes encoding cellular “inputs” such as cell surface receptors (e.g., TLR6, IL-7Rα) and functional “outputs” such as inflammatory cytokines/chemokines (e.g., CCL20, CXCL13). Conversely, intracellular signaling components linking inputs to outputs were typically concordantly regulated. Functional consequences of divergent gene regulation were confirmed by showing LPS pretreatment boosts subsequent TLR6 responses in mouse but not human macrophages, in keeping with mouse-specific TLR6 induction. Divergently regulated genes were associated with a large dynamic range of gene expression, and specific promoter architectural features (TATA box enrichment, CpG island depletion). Surprisingly, regulatory divergence was also associated with enhanced interspecies promoter conservation. Thus, the genes controlled by complex, highly conserved promoters that facilitate dynamic regulation are also the most susceptible to evolutionary change.

Type I IFN are immune modulatory cytokines that are secreted during early stages of infection. Type I IFN bridge the innate and the adaptive immune system in humans and mice. We compared the capacity of type I and II IFN to induce the functional maturation of monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MoDC). Extending our earlier observation that type I IFN promote DC maturation, we report that these cytokines also enhance DC differentiation by augmenting CD40 ligand (CD40L)-induced cytokine secretion by MoDC. Type I IFN alone were poor inducers of MoDC maturation as compared with other stimuli. They up-regulated the expression of HLA-DR, CD80, CD86, partially CCR7 but not CD83, partially reduced antigen-uptake function, increased the levels of IL-12p35 mRNA, and prolonged surface expression of peptide-MHC class I complexes for presentation to cytotoxic T lymphocytes, but did not induce migration towards CCL21 chemokine. However, type I IFN were potent co-factors for CD40L-mediated function. Here, they enhanced CD40L-mediated IL-6, IL-10 and IL-12p70 secretion. Furthermore, when combined with IL-1beta and/or IL-4, IFN-alpha2a type I IFN increased CD40L-mediated IL-12p70 production by 2- to 3-fold, and biased the IL-12 p40/p70 ratio towards the IFN-gamma inducing p70 heterodimer, this correlating with higher levels of IFN-gamma secretion by allogeneic T cell subsets and NK cells. Our results suggest that the rapid expression of CD40L, IFN and IL-1beta at sites of infection and inflammation can act in concert on immature DC, thereby linking innate and adaptive immune responses. In this way, type I IFN play a dual role as DC maturation factors and enhancers of CD40L-mediated DC activation.

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CD40 ligand (CD40L) is a membrane-bound molecule expressed by activated T cells. CD40L potently induces dendritic cell (DC) maturation and IL-12p70 secretion and plays a critical role during T cell priming in the lymph nodes. IFN-γ and IL-4 are required for CD40L-mediated cytokine secretion, suggesting that T cells are required for optimal CD40L activity. Because CD40L is rapidly up-regulated by non-T cells during inflammation, CD40 stimulation may also be important at the primary infection site. However, a role for T cells at the earliest stages of infection is unclear. The present study demonstrates that the innate immune cell-derived cytokine, IL-1β, can increase CD40L-induced cytokine secretion by monocyte-derived DC, CD34+-derived DC, and peripheral blood DC independently of T cell-derived cytokines. Furthermore, IL-1β is constitutively produced by monocyte-derived DC and monocytes, and is increased in response to intact Escherichia coli or CD40L, whereas neither CD34+-derived DC nor peripheral blood DC produce IL-1β. Finally, DC activated with CD40L and IL-1β induce higher levels of IFN-γ secretion by T cells compared with DC activated with CD40L alone. Therefore, IL-1β is the first non-T cell-derived cytokine identified that enhances CD40L-mediated activation of DC. The synergy between CD40L and IL-1β highlights a potent, T cell-independent mechanism for DC activation during the earliest stages of inflammatory responses.

Immunodominance is a central feature of CD8+ T cell (TCD8+) responses to pathogens, transplants, and tumors. Determinants occupy a stable position in an immunodominance hierarchy (α-, β-, etc.) defined by the frequencies of responding TCD8+. In this paper, we study the mechanistic basis for place-swapping between α- (acid polymerase (PA)224–233) and β-determinants (nuclear protein 366–374) in primary vs secondary anti-influenza A virus (IAV) responses in mice. This phenomena was recently correlated with the inability of IAV-infected nondendritic cells (DCs) to generate PA224–233, and it was proposed that secondary TCD8+ are principally activated by IAV-infected epithelial cells, while primary TCD8+ are activated by IAV-infected DCs. In this study, we show that the inability of non-DCs to generate PA224–232 is relative rather than absolute, and that the preferential use of cross-priming in secondary anti-IAV responses can also account for the revised hierarchy. We further show that immunodomination of PA224–233-specific TCD8+ by nucleoprotein 366–374-specific TCD8+ plays a critical role in the phenomena, and that this is unlikely to be mediated by TCD8+ lysis of APCs or other cells.

"Cross-priming" refers to the activation of naive CD8 + T cells by antigen-presenting cells that have acquired nominal antigens from another cell. The biological relevance of cross-priming of CD8 + T cells has recently been challenged (Zinkernagel, R. M., Eur. J. Immunol. 2002Immunol. . 32: 2385Immunol. -2392, on the basis that responses are weak or poorly quantitated, and the determinants recognized are undefined. Here we show that cross-priming is a robust process that elicits vigorous primary responses to multiple peptides in two well-defined systems. Our findings support the relevance of cross-priming in CD8 + T cell responses to viruses and tumor cells, and demonstrate that cross-priming elicits CD8 + T cells to determinants generated by the endogenous processing pathway.

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