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Glucocorticoids Regulate TCR-Induced Elevation of CD4: Functional Implications¹

G. Jan Wiegers^2,*, Ilona E. M. Stec^*, Wolfgang E. F. Klinkert and Johannes M. H. M. Reul^3,*

^* Section of Neuroimmunoendocrinology, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany; and Department of Neuroimmunology, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Martinsried, Germany

CD4 serves as a coreceptor during Ag recognition by the TCR. This interaction results in a marked increase in the sensitivity of a T cell to Ag presented by MHC class II molecules. Here we report that activation of T cells either by plate-bound mAb (anti-TCR, anti-CD3) or soluble activators (staphylococcal enterotoxin A, Con A) is associated with an (up to 3-fold) increase in CD4 cell surface expression on CD25⁺ cells, which was maximal after 72–96 h. Incubation with the glucocorticoid hormone corticosterone (CORT) shifted the enhancement of CD4 expression to a point about 24 h earlier than that observed in control cultures. In parallel, the proliferative response of these CORT-treated cells was profoundly enhanced. An involvement of increased CD4 expression in this enhanced proliferative response was evidenced by the observation that T cell proliferation in CORT-treated cultures was much less sensitive to inhibition by an inhibitory, nondepleting anti-CD4 mAb than that in control cultures. TCR down-regulation was, however, not affected by CORT. Thus, based on this study and previous reports we propose that both TCR-mediated signals and glucocorticoids are important physiological regulators of CD4 expression. In addition, these findings may be of significance for the sensitivity of CD4⁺ cells to HIV infection upon T cell activation, as the efficacy of primary patient HIV entry depends on the level of surface CD4.

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