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The Journal of Immunology, 2002, 168: 2274-2281.
Copyright © 2002 by The American Association of Immunologists

Tracking the Immunoregulatory Mechanisms Active During Allograft Tolerance1

Alberto Sánchez-Fueyo, Martina Weber, Christoph Domenig, Terry B. Strom2,3 and Xin Xiao Zheng2

Department of Medicine, Division of Immunology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215


    Abstract
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Immunoregulatory mechanisms dependent on regulatory CD4+ T cells are believed to be critical in the maintenance of peripheral tolerance to allografts. However, a detailed characterization of the effects of these regulatory T cells has been hampered by the absence of a simple means to track and study them. In this work we provide evidence that in a murine model of islet transplantation the interactions between alloaggressive and regulatory T cells can be studied in vitro and in vivo at the single-cell level. The observations made in both an in vitro coculture system and an in vivo CFSE-based adoptive transfer model indicate that lymphocytes from tolerant allograft recipients 1) proliferate weakly to donor strain allogeneic cells but vigorously to third-party strain cells; and 2) suppress the proliferation of naive syngeneic CD4+ and CD8+ T cells to donor tissue in a cell dose- and Ag-specific manner. These effects depend on the presence of CD4+CD25+ T cells and are neutralized by anti-CTLA4 mAb or rIL-2. The principal effect of anti-CTLA4 is directed against the naive, not regulatory, T cell population. These results can be replicated in vivo by transferring lymphocyte populations into transplant recipients, proving that the graft-protecting actions of regulatory T cells are blunted by a rise in the number of allodestructive T cells (pool size model) and depend on the presence of CD4+CD25+ T cells and the integrity of the CTLA4/B7 pathway.


    Introduction
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Immunological tolerance is defined as a state in which the immune system, in the absence of ongoing exogenous immunosuppression, does not mount a pathological response against specific Ags, while responses to other Ags are maintained (1). In several circumstances we have determined that unless lymphocyte depleting Abs are used or a state of mixed chimerism with massive central deletion is achieved, the induction of immunological tolerance to MHC-mismatched allografts requires the deletion of many alloreactive T cells (2, 3, 4, 5). The critical role of deletional mechanisms in the induction phase of transplantation tolerance to MHC-mismatched allografts is likely to be required, considering the remarkably large frequency of alloreactive T cells (6).

Although depletion of alloreactive clones may be critical to the induction of the tolerant state, the long-term maintenance of peripheral tolerance is believed to be dependent on self-perpetuating immunoregulatory mechanisms that actively constrain alloreaggressive T cell-mediated immune responses (7, 8, 9). The presence of suppressor or regulatory CD4+ T cells (T reg)4 in tolerant hosts has been described by several laboratories, including our own (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18). Regulatory CD4+CD25+ T cells, first identified as suppressor cells in 1990 (18, 19), have emerged as critical effectors in both the control of autoimmunity (20, 21, 22, 23) and the maintenance of peripheral allograft tolerance (24, 25).

The finding in hosts mounting graft rejection of lymphocytes capable of prolonging graft survival upon adoptive transfer into naive graft recipients (15) suggests that activation of T reg is an integral component of the allograft response. In the absence of ongoing drug therapy, however, we believe that the more rapid expansion of alloaggressive T cells overcomes the suppressor effect of T reg. We hypothesize, therefore, that the capacity of T reg to restrain naive lymphocytes from rejecting an allograft is not absolute and that it will fade as the numbers of potentially allodestructive T cells rise.

In this study we sought to characterize in detail, both in vivo and in vitro, the cells responsible for these immunoregulatory effects, focusing on their mechanism of action and costimulation requirements, and addressing how their impact on naive CD4+ and CD8+ T cells undergoing alloactivation fits into the predictions inherent in the pool size model of the allograft response (2).


    Materials and Methods
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Mice

Eight- to 10-wk old DBA2 (H-2d) and B6AF1 (H-2b/k.d) mice were used as donor and recipient for islet transplantation, respectively. Male DBA1 (H-2q) were used as a third-party strain donor. Selected experiments were repeated using C57BL/6 (H-2b) and/or C57BL/6 congenic for CD45.1 as recipients. All animals were purchased from The Jackson Laboratory (Bar Harbor, ME) and housed under standard conditions. All animal studies were approved by our institutional review board.

Islet transplantation

Islet transplantation was performed as previously described (26). Briefly, DBA2 donor pancreata were perfused with 3.5 ml type IV collagenase (1.5 mg/dl; Worthington Biochemical, Freehold, NJ) through the common bile duct, and incubated at 37°C for 40 min. Islets were released from the pancreata and purified in discontinuous Percoll (Amersham Pharmacia Biotech, Piscataway, NJ) gradients. The harvested islets were washed in HBSS, and ~600 islets were transplanted under the renal capsule of each B6AF1 recipient rendered diabetic by a single i.p. injection of streptozotocin (225 mg/kg; Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO). Allograft function was monitored by serial blood glucose measurements. Primary graft function was defined as a blood glucose level <200 mg/dl on day 3 post-transplantation, and graft rejection was defined as an elevation in blood glucose >300 mg/dl following a period of primary graft function.

Reagents and tolerizing protocol

B cell hybridomas were purchased from American Type Culture Collection (Manassas, VA) producing 1) a hamster mAb against mouse CD154 (MR1, IgG2a, ATCC HB11048) and 2) a rat anti-mouse CD25 (PC61 5.3, IgG1, ATCC TB222). The hybridoma cells were grown in Ultraculture medium (BioWhittaker, Walkersville, MD), and the mAbs were affinity-purified using protein G columns. Anti-CTLA4 mAb (UC10-4F10-11) was provided by Dr. M. Sayegh (Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA). rIL-2 was obtained from BD PharMingen (San Diego, CA), and a nonlytic IL-2/Fc fusion protein that acts as a long-lived IL-2 molecule in vivo was produced in our laboratory as previously described (27).

B6AF1 transplant recipients were tolerized by a single i.v. donor-specific transfusion (0.25 ml DBA2 blood) administered 28 days before transplantation together with a single 0.5 mg i.v. dose of anti-CD154 (28). To determine whether donor-specific tolerance had been achieved, euglycemic long-term survivors (>120 days) underwent left nephrectomy to remove the islet graft, and their blood glucose levels were allowed to rise before being retransplanted with either donor-type (DBA2) or third-party strain islets (DBA1) in the absence of further treatment. These mice accepted donor-type islets but rejected third-party strain grafts. In this model the administration of rIL-2 blocked the induction of tolerance but failed to provoke allograft rejection in fully tolerant hosts (29). Similar effects were noted when using a long-lived nonlytic IL-2/Fc fusion protein (our unpublished observations). Mononuclear leukocytes (MNLs) were harvested from tolerant mice at times ranging from 90 to 120 days after transplantation.

Flow cytometric analysis

Single-cell suspensions were stained with fluorochrome-conjugated mAbs, including anti-CD4, anti-CD8, anti-CD25, anti-CD69, and anti-CD45.1, or Ig isotype controls (all from BD PharMingen) and analyzed using CellQuest software on a FACScan flow cytometer (BD Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, NJ).

Magnetic cell separation

Single-cell suspensions of B6AF1 spleens and lymph nodes were prepared, and RBC were removed by hypotonic shock. Magnetic beads coated with mAbs (Dynal Biotech, Oslo, Norway) were used to separate cells into CD25+ and CD25- subsets. Briefly, MNLs were incubated with anti-CD25 mAb-coated magnetic beads at a 10:1 bead to cell ratio for 30 min at 4°C with gentle rotation. Selected CD25+ T cells were isolated from the bead/cell mixture by exposure to a magnetic field using a magnetic particle concentrator (Dynal Biotech) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. The negatively selected CD25- cells were collected, and their purity, determined by FACS analysis, was >95% CD25-. Viability, determined by trypan blue staining, exceeded 95% in all cases.

Labeling of MNLs with CFSE

Single-cell suspensions of splenic and lymph node MNLs from either naive or tolerant B6AF1 mice were resuspended in HBSS at a concentration of 1 x 107 cells/ml and labeled with the tracking fluorochrome CFSE (Molecular Probes, Eugene, OR). MNLs were incubated with CFSE at a final concentration of 5 µM in HBSS for 6 min, and labeling was terminated by the addition of FCS (10% of the total volume). MNLs were washed twice in complete RPMI 1640 medium and resuspended for cell culture or i.v. injection.

In vitro MLR

Single-cell suspensions of splenic and lymph node MNLs were prepared as previously described. Next, 7.5 x 105 irradiated (3000 rad) DBA2 or DBA1 stimulator splenic MNLs were cultured in round-bottom 96-well microtiter plates with 7.5 x 105 responder cells obtained from naive and/or tolerant B6AF1 or C57BL/6 mice. In some cultures negatively selected CD25- MNLs from tolerant or naive mice were used as responding cells. Anti-CTLA4 mAb (or a hamster Ig isotype control) and rIL-2 were added to some wells at 25 µg/ml and 100 U/ml, respectively. Cell cultures were pulsed with 1 µCi/well [3H]TdR for 12 h and harvested on day 5. In some experiments 3.75 or 5 x 105 responder cells were used. Moreover, some cultures were harvested on day 4 to ensure that differences between tolerant and naive MNLs were not due to early proliferation peaking. Thymidine incorporation was measured using a liquid scintillation counter.

To analyze the interactions between naive and tolerant MNLs comixed and cultured in vitro, in some MLRs cells harvested from naive CD45.1 congenic C57BL/6 mice were stained with CFSE and used as responders alone or in combination with unlabeled MNLs obtained from tolerant C57BL/6 (CD45.2) hosts. MNLs were harvested on day 5 and stained with FITC-conjugated anti-CD45.1 mAb, and their proliferative profile was assessed by flow cytometry by gating on the CD45.1- and CFSE-positive populations.

In vivo quantitation of proliferating T cells

Approximately 7 x 107 CFSE-labeled MNLs from either naive or tolerant animals were adoptively transferred to B6AF1 irradiated transplant recipients, which were then transplanted with DBA2 (donor strain) or DBA1 (third-party strain) islet allografts. Additionally, 3.5 x 107 MNLs from naive or tolerant mice were CFSE-labeled and mixed together in equal proportions with unstained MNLs from tolerant or naive hosts, respectively. These cells were cotransferred into irradiated transplant recipients. Because cotransferred MNLs from either naive or tolerant mice could be labeled separately, this system enabled us to bidirectionally track the interactions between the lymphocytes from naive and tolerant hosts at the single-cell level.

Mice were sacrificed 8 days following transplantation, and single-cell suspensions were prepared from harvested spleens and lymph nodes as described above. MNLs were stained for 20 min on ice with a biotinylated Ab against mouse CD4 or CD8{alpha} (GK1.5 and 53-6.7, respectively; BD PharMingen), and then stained with streptavidin-CyChrome and PE-conjugated annexin V, anti-mouse CD69 (H1.2F3), or anti-mouse CD25 (7D4) (all from BD PharMingen), while the cell populations were placed on ice for an additional 20 min. Proliferation, apoptotic cell death, and activation markers of CFSE-labeled CD4+ or CD8+ T cells in each distinct generation of dividing cells were analyzed by flow cytometry.

The responding frequency of T cells (percentage of dividing precursors among the recovered CFSE-positive MNLs harvested 8 days after adoptive transfer) was calculated by summing the extrapolated number of precursors for each division cycle and dividing this number by the total number of CFSE-labeled T cells (divided and undivided) recovered from lymph nodes and spleen. As recently reported (6), this calculation may overestimate the actual size of the alloreactive T cell pool, because only the portion of the donor cells that is recovered from the recipient’s lymph nodes and spleen is analyzed, and this portion very likely over-represents proliferating cells. Its value as a basis for comparisons of the proliferative profile of cell populations, however, remains valid and unquestioned.

Adoptive transfer of naive and tolerant MNLs into irradiated transplant recipients

B6AF1 mice were irradiated with 1000 rad (GammaCell irradiator; Nordion, Kanata, Ontario, Canada) to effectively ablate their immune system, and various mixtures of MNLs from naive and/or tolerant hosts were injected through the tail vein. Mice were then transplanted with DBA2 or third-party strain (DBA1) islets. In the absence of lymphocyte transfer, irradiated recipients do not reject allografts and die at ~20 days of transplantation.

Statistical analyses

The nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test was performed to compare the responding frequencies of MNLs harvested from naive and tolerant hosts and transferred into irradiated transplant recipients. Graft survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier cumulative plots, and comparisons between groups were performed using a log-rank test. A value of p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.


    Results
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
T cells harvested from tolerant and naive recipients differ in their ability to proliferate in response to donor strain splenic stimulator cells in vitro

We used a MLR system to compare the responses of MNLs from tolerant and naive hosts to donor (DBA2) or third-party (DBA1) alloantigen. The response of lymphocytes harvested from tolerant B6AF1 hosts to donor stimulator cells was dramatically less than that of lymphocytes obtained from naive B6AF1 mice (Fig. 1Go). Very similar results were obtained when cultures were harvested on day 4 or when fewer responding cells were used (data not shown). Moreover, the proliferation of lymphocytes from naive and tolerant mice, mixed together in equal proportions, was essentially equivalent to that of lymphocytes from tolerant hosts alone, suggesting that tolerant MNLs suppress the ability of naive T cells to proliferate in response to donor MNLs in the MLR. Identical results were obtained when the responding cells were harvested from naive and tolerant C57BL/6 mice (data not shown). Interestingly, the responses of naive and tolerant lymphocytes were equivalent when third-party strain stimulator cells were used (Fig. 1Go). Hence, T cells from tolerant recipients are anergic to donor alloantigen but mount a normal proliferative response when confronted with other alloantigens.



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FIGURE 1. Lymphocytes harvested from tolerant hosts are hyporesponsive to irradiated donor-splenic MNL stimulator cells in the MLR but react normally to third-party stimulator cells. MNLs harvested from either naive or tolerant B6AF1 hosts were cultured together with donor (DBA2) or third-party (DBA1) irradiated stimulator cells. Cell proliferation was estimated by [3H]TdR incorporation on day 5. Data are expressed as the mean cpm ± SEM of triplicate cultures. This experiment was repeated eight times with similar results.

 
MNLs harvested from tolerant hosts restrain the capacity of naive T cells to proliferate in response to donor strain splenic stimulator cells in vitro

To test the hypothesis that the decreased proliferation in response to donor strain MNLs observed when naive and tolerant MNLs were mixed was due at least in part to a suppressive effect of tolerant MNLs on naive MNLs, we performed additional MLRs in which naive CD45.1 congenic C57BL/6 MNLs were stained with CFSE and exposed to donor strain stimulator cells in the presence or the absence of C57BL/6 (CD45.2) tolerant MNLs. As illustrated in Fig. 2GoA, the response of naive T cells to donor strain MNLs was markedly curtailed when mixed with tolerant MNLs. This suppressive effect was directed toward both naive CD4+ and CD8+ T cells (data not shown). Moreover, when the ratio of tolerant to naive MNLs was titrated, this effect was shown to be dose dependent (Fig. 2GoB). This suppressive effect could not be reproduced when the supernatant obtained from tolerant MNL cultures was added to wells containing MNLs from naive mice alone, indicating that cell-to-cell contact is probably required to confer suppression (data not shown).



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FIGURE 2. Lymphocytes harvested from tolerant hosts inhibit the proliferation of naive lymphocytes in response to donor alloantigen in the MLR. A, MNLs harvested from CD45.1 congenic C57BL/6 naive mice were labeled with CFSE and cultured with irradiated DBA2 stimulator cells in the presence (upper panel) or the absence (lower panel) of an equal number of lymphocytes harvested from C57BL/6 (CD45.2) tolerant hosts. The cells were harvested on day 5, and the CFSE profile was determined by flow cytometry after gating on the CD45.1-positive cells. Data correspond to one representative experiment of three performed. Percentages represent the proportion of divided and undivided T cells. B, MNLs harvested from either naive or tolerant B6AF1 hosts were mixed together in different proportions and cultured with irradiated DBA2 stimulator cells. Cell proliferation was estimated by [3H]TdR incorporation on day 5. Data are expressed as the mean cpm of triplicate cultures. The experiment was repeated three times with similar results. Similar results were obtained when increasing numbers of naive MNLs were cultured with a fixed number (2.5 x 105) of tolerant MNLs (data not shown).

 
MNLs harvested from tolerant hosts inhibit the proliferation of T cells harvested from naive mice in a donor-specific manner in vivo

Similarly, in the in vivo CFSE adoptive transfer model the profiles of the passively transferred MNL populations revealed that 1) in control B6AF1 mice in which no grafts are placed or that are transplanted with isogeneic B6AF1 islets, lymphocytes from tolerant and naive donors exhibit similar spontaneous homeostatic proliferation (Fig. 3GoA); 2) the proliferative response to donor strain (DBA2) islets of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells harvested from tolerant B6AF1 mice is significantly weaker than that of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from naive B6AF1 mice (Fig. 3Go, B and D; mean decrease in responding frequency, 33 and 24%, respectively); 3) with cotransfer of MNLs from naive and tolerant hosts, the ability of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from naive mice to proliferate in response to DBA2 grafts is impaired (Fig. 3Go, B and D; mean decrease in responding frequency, 30 and 22%, respectively). In contrast, CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from naive and tolerant hosts mount similar proliferative responses to third-party strain (DBA1) islets (Fig. 3GoC).



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FIGURE 3. Lymphocytes harvested from tolerant hosts are hyporesponsive to donor islets when transferred into transplant recipients, and they suppress the proliferation of naive lymphocytes in response to donor islets. CFSE-labeled MNLs (7 x 107) from either naive or tolerant B6AF1 mice were adoptively transferred into B6AF1 irradiated recipients, which were then transplanted with DBA2 (donor) or DBA1 (third-party) islet allografts. In parallel, 3.5 x 107 CFSE-labeled naive or tolerant MNLs were mixed with 3.5 x 107 unstained tolerant or naive MNLs, respectively, and transferred into the irradiated recipients. On day 8 transplant recipients were sacrificed, and the CFSE profile of the transferred MNLs recovered from lymph nodes and spleen was analyzed by flow cytometry. Irradiated sham B6AF1 mice were used as controls to assess the degree of homeostatic proliferation. Vertical bars represent the frequency of proliferating precursors (responding frequency) among the harvested CFSE-labeled MNLs. Values plotted are the mean ± SD obtained from four independent experiments. *, p < 0.05. A, Responding frequency of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells harvested from control animals. B, Responding frequency of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells harvested from recipients bearing donor islets. C, Responding frequency of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells harvested from recipients bearing third-party donor islets. D, Representative CFSE profiles of naive and tolerant CD4+ T cells. The percentage of CD4+ T cells under each of the division peaks is shown in the adjacent histograms. PF, Precursor frequency. Similar CFSE profiles were observed when gated on CD8+ T cells.

 
The hyporesponsive/suppressor effect of lymphocytes harvested from tolerant hosts can be negated by removal of CD4+CD25+ T cells or provision of either exogenous rIL-2 or anti-CTLA4 mAb

In the MLR model removal of CD25+CD4+ T cells restores the response of MNLs harvested from B6AF1 tolerant hosts or the mixture of MNLs from naive and tolerant B6AF1 mice to donor cells (Fig. 4GoA). Moreover, provision of either anti-CTLA4 mAb or rIL-2 to cultures containing either lymphocytes from tolerant B6AF1 hosts or a mixture of lymphocytes from tolerant and naive B6AF1 mice disrupts the hyporesponsive state and greatly increases the proliferative response to donor strain splenic MNLs (Fig. 4GoB). Interestingly, the ability of anti-CTLA4 mAb to enhance the proliferative response of T cells from tolerant and naive mice was noted even in cultures in which CD4+CD25+ T cells were removed (Fig. 4GoC). Similar results were observed when responding MNLs were harvested from naive and tolerant C57BL/6 mice (data not shown). The addition of a hamster Ig isotype control did not modify the proliferation of either naive or tolerant MLNs (data not shown).



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FIGURE 4. The presence of CD4+CD25+ T 0cells is required for T reg activity, and T reg action is neutralized by provision of exogenous rIL-2 or anti-CTLA4 mAb. A, MNLs harvested from either naive or tolerant B6AF1 hosts were cultured together with donor (DBA2) irradiated splenic stimulator cells. Identical experiments were performed after removal of the CD4+CD25+ T cell subset from the tolerant responding cells with anti-CD25-coated magnetic beads. B, MNLs harvested from either naive or tolerant B6AF1 hosts were cultured together with donor (DBA2) irradiated stimulator cells in the presence of exogenous IL-2 (100 U/ml) or anti-CTLA4 mAb (25 µg/ml). C, MNLs harvested from either naive or tolerant hosts were depleted of the CD4+CD25+ T cell subset and cultured with donor (DBA2) irradiated stimulator cells in the presence of anti-CTLA4 mAb (25 µg/ml). Cell proliferation was compared with that of unfractionated MNLs from naive and tolerant hosts. Cell proliferation was estimated by [3H]TdR incorporation on day 5. Data are expressed as the mean cpm ± SEM of triplicate cultures of one representative experiment. These experiments were repeated three times each with similar results.

 
In a passive transfer model of the allograft response, MNLs harvested from tolerant hosts inhibit the capacity of T cells from naive mice to reject allogeneic islets in a donor-specific and cell dose-dependent manner

In the absence of syngeneic MNL transfer, irradiated B6AF1 transplant recipients do not reject DBA2 islet allografts and die ~20 days post-transplantation. Adoptive transfer of 10 x 106 pooled lymph node and splenic MNLs from naive, but not tolerant, B6AF1 mice uniformly leads to graft rejection (mean survival time (MST), 31 days; Fig. 5GoA). With transfer of 15–70 x 106 MNLs from naive B6AF1 mice the rejection is accelerated (MST, 22 days; Fig. 5GoB). In contrast, adoptive transfer of 70 x 106 MNLs from tolerant B6AF1 hosts does not lead to rejection in 30% of syngeneic recipients and, while the majority of recipients experience rejection, this process occurs at a slower pace than noted with transfer of MNLs from naive mice (MST, 38; p < 0.05; Fig. 5GoB). In contrast, transfer of 70 x 106 MNLs from C57BL/6 tolerant hosts does not elicit rejection (data not shown). These experiments highlight that T cells capable of mediating allograft rejection persist in some, but perhaps not all, tolerant hosts. Finally, MNLs from both naive and tolerant B6AF1 hosts reject third-party (DBA1) islets at same tempo (Fig. 5GoB).



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FIGURE 5. MNLs harvested from tolerant hosts inhibit the capacity of T cells from naive mice to reject allogeneic islets in a passive transfer model of allograft response. Irradiated B6AF1 mice received different proportions of MNLs harvested from naive and from tolerant syngeneic hosts. These hosts were then transplanted with donor strain (DBA2) or third-party strain (DBA1) islets. A, Host receiving a transfer of 10 x 106 MNLs from syngeneic tolerant hosts do not reject donor strain islet allografts, while hosts receiving an equal number of MNLs from naive mice reject allografts (MST, >60 vs 31; p < 0.05). Tolerant MNLs (10 x 106) promptly reject third-party strain islets. B, The transfer of 70 x 106 MNLs from tolerant hosts results in significantly delayed graft rejection compared with the transfer of 70 x 106 MNLs obtained from naive hosts (MST, 40 vs 24 days; p < 0.05). No significant differences were observed between MNLs harvested from naive and tolerant hosts when third-party grafts were transplanted. C, The cotransfer of 55 x 106 MNLs from tolerant hosts together with 15 x 106 MNLs from naive mice abrogates the ability of MNLs from naive animals to rapidly reject allografts (MST, 36 vs 22 days; p < 0.05). No significant graft-protective effect was observed when equal proportions of MNLs from naive and tolerant hosts were transferred into recipients of either donor or third-party islets (MST, 24 and 26 days, respectively). D, The administration of anti-CTLA4 mAb (MST, 20 days; p < 0.05) or the depletion of the CD4+CD25+ T cell subpopulation (MST, 31 days; p < 0.05) neutralizes the graft-protective effect of 40 x 106 MNLs from tolerant hosts transferred together with 10 x 106 naive MNLs (MST, 45 days).

 
Passive transfer of a mixture of MNLs from naive and tolerant B6AF1 hosts was undertaken to determine whether MNLs from tolerant hosts inhibit the capacity of T cells from naive mice to reject islet allografts. Using a relative excess of tolerant to naive MNLs, 55 x 106 MNLs from tolerant mice plus 15 x 106 from naive mice, the ability of transferred T cells from naive mice to trigger rejection was significantly delayed (36 vs 22 days; p < 0.05; Fig. 5GoC). The ability of MNLs from tolerant hosts to suppress allograft rejection was donor strain specific, because this suppression was not observed when a mixture of MNLs from naive and tolerant mice was passively transferred into syngeneic recipients of third-party strain (DBA1) allografts (Fig. 5GoC).

In accordance with our pool size hypothesis, we found that the ability of MNLs from tolerant B6AF1 hosts to constrain rejection was dose limited. For example, at a mixture of 55 x 106 MNLs from tolerant hosts with 15 x 106 MNLs from naive mice, rejection was delayed (Fig. 5GoC). When the number of MNLs from naive mice increased while the number of MNLs from tolerant hosts decreased (mixture of 35 x 106 tolerant with 35 x 106 naive MNLs), tolerant MNLs were unable to inhibit allograft rejection (Fig. 5GoC).

Insofar as the MLR experiments (Fig. 4GoA) indicated that CD4+CD25+ T cells are potent immunoregulatory cells, we conducted parallel experiments in the passive transfer allograft response model to determine whether the effect of MNLs from tolerant hosts upon MNLs from naive mice was dependent on the presence of CD4+CD25+ T cells among the MNL populations harvested from B6AF1 tolerant hosts. As shown in Fig. 5GoD, removal of this subpopulation abolished the capacity of MNLs from tolerant hosts to delay graft rejection in comixing experiments.

Again based on a precedent in the MLR model (Fig. 4GoB), similar experiments were performed in which B6AF1 transplant recipients, receiving a mixed population of MNLs from naive and tolerant B6AF1 hosts, were treated with anti-CTLA4 mAb. Treatment with anti-CTLA4 mAb negated the graft-protecting effect of tolerant MNLs and actually accelerated the rate of graft rejection (Fig. 5GoD). By contrast, the administration of anti-CTLA4 mAb and anti-CD25 mAb (1 mg/wk for 1 mo) to B6AF1 tolerant hosts >120 days after transplantation failed to create allograft rejection or to prevent the engraftment of a second graft from the same donor (n = 2; data not shown).


    Discussion
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 
Many laboratories have shown that peripheral allograft tolerance is associated with the appearance of helper phenotype or CD4+ T cell-dependent immunoregulatory mechanisms (7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18). A detailed characterization of these immunoregulatory T cells has been hampered, however, by the absence of a simple means to track and study these cells both in vivo and in vitro.

We now provide evidence that the immunoregulatory consequences of the interaction between alloaggressive and T reg can be studied in vitro and in vivo at the single-cell level. Observations made in an MLR system indicate that 1) lymphocytes obtained from tolerant allograft hosts proliferate weakly in response to donor cells, but vigorously in response to third-party cells (Fig. 1Go); 2) these lymphocytes are not only hyporesponsive, but, as our experiments using the CFSE dye clearly reveal, they are also capable of suppressing the proliferation of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells harvested from naive mice in response to donor cells (Fig. 2Go); 3) the anergic/suppressive effect of MNLs harvested from tolerant hosts is dependent on the presence of CD4+CD25+ T cells (Fig. 4GoA); and 4) the immunoregulatory effect can be ablated through provision of exogenous IL-2 or anti-CTLA4 mAb (Fig. 4GoB). Using the CFSE tracking dye method we were able to confirm that several of the observations made in the MLR model can be replicated in vivo. In these experiments we transferred CFSE-labeled MNLs from naive or tolerant hosts into syngeneic irradiated mice transplanted with allogeneic islets. In this model we determined that CD4+ and CD8+ T cells harvested from tolerant hosts proliferated weakly upon encounter with donor, but not third-party, alloantigen. Moreover, MNLs from tolerant hosts restrain the proliferation of both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from naive syngeneic mice in an Ag-specific fashion (Fig. 3Go, B and C).

In addition, the present study clearly shows, using an in vivo adoptive transfer model of the allograft response, that the graft-protective effect of regulatory lymphocytes is far from infinite. The clinical outcome, rejection or tolerance, resides in a fragile balance between the contingent immunoregulatory and alloaggressive T cells. A certain ratio of regulatory to alloaggressive lymphocytes is required to produce effective donor-specific suppression of allograft rejection (Fig. 5GoC). These findings are in agreement with our pool size model (2), which hypothesizes that depletion or inactivation of alloaggressive T cells during the period of tolerance induction is required to permit the pool size of T reg to reach the critical levels that enable them to dominate the allograft response. In accordance with results in both allograft (24, 25, 30) and autoimmune models (20, 22, 31), CD4+CD25+ T cells are required for effective immunoregulation (Fig. 5GoD).

In concert with the implications inherent in the model of infectious tolerance (7, 8, 9), MNLs harvested from tolerant hosts inhibit the ability of naive T cells to respond to donor alloantigen in vitro (Fig. 2GoA) and in vivo (Fig. 3GoB). Indeed, tolerant MNLs appear to render naive T cells anergic to donor alloantigen, and this process is specific for donor cells. Further exploration of these experimental systems should enable a thorough dissection of the molecular basis for infectious tolerance.

The role of CD4+CD25+ T lymphocytes as suppressor or regulatory cells is well established in several autoimmune models (20, 31). In a rat allograft model IL-2R+ T cells were identified as essential to the immunoregulatory cell process (18). In several more recent reports the CD25+ marker or the CD45RBlow phenotype have been used to identify T reg among the lymphocytes of tolerant allograft recipients (24, 30) or in a graft-vs-host disease model (25). The effector function of CD4+CD25+ T reg has been studied in vitro with respect to the sensitivity to anti-CTLA mAb. The results have not been uniform; in some settings anti-CTLA4 mAb blocks T reg effects (20), while the action of T reg is insensitive to anti-CTLA mAb in other models (32). Because of uncertainties regarding the consequences of anti-CTLA4 mAb for T reg function, we undertook parallel experiments in the MLR and adoptive transfer models of transplant biology.

Our data indicate that an intact B7/CTLA4 pathway is required to maintain the anergic/suppressor phenotype of tolerant lymphocytes in the MLR (Fig. 4GoB). In this system anti-CTLA4 mAb acts at least in part by increasing the proliferation of conventional CD25- T cell subsets in response to donor Ag even in the absence of CD4+CD25+ T reg (Fig. 4GoC). The validity of these observations made in an in vitro model are strongly supported by the experiments summarized in Fig. 5GoD. While adoptive transfer of MNLs from tolerant hosts comixed with MNLs from naive hosts constrains the ability of alloaggressive T cells to mediate rejection, concomitant treatment with anti-CTLA4 mAb destroys this effect (Fig. 5GoD). This result is parallel to that of experiments conducted in a murine model of autoimmune colitis (31), in which T reg function was blocked by administration of anti-CTLA4 mAb.

In our islet transplantation model, blockade of the CTLA4-mediated negative signal with either CTLA4Ig or anti-CTLA4 mAb completely prevents tolerance induction (33). Whether the tolerance-blocking effects of anti-CTLA4 mAb occur through the direct targeting of T reg or by increasing the activity of cytopathic T cells has not yet been completely elucidated. Again, our results suggest that blockade of CTLA4 signaling acts at least in part through an effect that is directed at the cellular targets of T reg action.

In light of our findings, the failure of systemically administered rIL-2 or high-dose anti-CTLA4 mAb (alone or together with anti-CD25 mAb) to break tolerance in graft-bearing recipients may seem paradoxical. Indeed, under the cover of anti-CTLA4 mAb plus anti-CD25 mAb, these recipients accept a second donor strain graft in the absence of further immunosuppression. We believe that our present results, together with our previous findings (33), indicate that tolerance induction and the metastable phase of immune ignorance period that precedes the development of full tolerance are the states that can be broken by anti-CTLA4 mAb or exogenous rIL-2 (29, 33). In contrast, established tolerance is resistant to these treatments. Hence, CTLA4-dependent mechanisms are crucial to the induction, but not to the maintenance, of the tolerant state.

In short, our data support the pool size model and the critical role of CTLA4-triggered negative signal in the induction of tolerance. A link between loss of donor-specific proliferation and donor-specific tolerance is evident, but it is not at all certain whether this is sufficient to create and maintain immunological tolerance.


    Acknowledgments
 
We thank Yan Tian for her excellent technical assistance.


    Footnotes
 
1 This work was supported by grants provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (5RO1AI14228 and 5PO1AI141521, to T.B.S.), the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation International (1-1999-317XX2, to X.X.Z.), the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation-Harvard Islet Transplant Center (to T.B.S.), and the laCaixa Fellowship Program (to A.S.-F.). Back

2 T.B.S. and X.X.Z. share senior authorship. Back

3 Address correspondence and reprint requests to Dr. Terry B. Strom, Department of Medicine, Division of Immunology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Room 380, Research North, 99 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215. E-mail address: tstrom{at}caregroup.harvard.edu Back

4 Abbreviations used in this paper: T reg, regulatory T cell; MNL, mononuclear leukocyte; MST, mean survival time. Back

Received for publication September 5, 2001. Accepted for publication January 2, 2002.


    References
 Top
 Abstract
 Introduction
 Materials and Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 References
 

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