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SummaryMyeloid and plasmacytoid dendritic cells (MDCs, PDCs) play a key role in the initiation of immune responses. In this study, we show a severe reduction of MDCs and PDCs in patients with B lineage acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (B-ALL; P ¼ 0AE01 vs. controls). DCs from patients with T lineage ALL (T-ALL) were quantitatively and functionally comparable to healthy donors, as demonstrated by secretion of interleukin (IL)-12p70 and interferon-a. In vitro, the circulating CD34 + fraction of B-ALL cases did not generate either CD1a + MDCs or PDCs, suggesting that DC development is probably affected in B-ALL, but not in T-ALL.

Dendritic cells (DC) represent a sentinel-like system with the capacity to capture and process antigens, to migrate into secondary lymphoid organs, and to activate naive T lymphocytes. DCs are considered as important elements in the induction of specific immune responses. The potency of DCs for induction of immune responses can be affected by a number of aspects related to their maturation stage and state of activation. For a long time, the critical role of DCs in many clinical situations was underscored. DCs in vivo might represent a favored target for immune tolerance (cancer) or immune activation (auto-immune diseases and allergic hypersensitivity). For immunotherapeutic applications, it is crucial to identify factors and agents that might affect the differentiation, maturation and function of DCs. This review will focus on the impact of the most widely used immunomodulatory drugs in the clinical setting on the properties and functions of DCs. The modulation and manipulation of DC functions through exposure of DCs to immunomodulatory agents both in vitro and in vivo is an approach that could result in therapeutic benefit in many clinical situations.

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