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Biomedical subjects

S C Meuer

Publications and source records attributed to S C Meuer.

At least 91 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Differential responsiveness to CD3-Ti vs. CD2-dependent activation of human intestinal T lymphocytes.

Human lamina propria lymphocytes were recovered from surgical specimens of unaffected large bowel and compared with peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) from the same individual. We investigated their capacities to respond to triggering stimuli delivered by mitogenic monoclonal antibodies directed at the T cell receptor/CD3 complex or, alternatively, the CD2 glycoprotein. In marked contrast to PBL, expression of the interleukin 2/interleukin 2 receptor system was markedly reduced in LPL following activation through the CD3/T cell receptor. Perhaps, more important, responses to CD2 triggering were similar or even stronger in LPL as opposed to PBL. This indicates that the CD2-dependent alternative pathway of T cell activation might serve a functional role in local immunity in the gut.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Influence of thymopentin on antibody response, and monocyte and T cell function in hemodialysis patients who fail to respond to hepatitis B vaccination.

We investigated the influence of thymopentin as an adjuvant for hepatitis B vaccination on in vitro monocyte and T cell function and in vivo antibody response in a prospective, placebo-controlled double-blind trial in 20 low- and nonresponders to hepatitis B vaccination on chronic hemodialysis. 50 mg thymopentin was given subcutaneously twice per week for 3 weeks, followed by 1 intramuscular injection of 40 micrograms HB-Vax and 3 subsequent injections of thymopentin. After 1 month, the patients were boostered with 40 micrograms HB-Vax. There was no significant difference in T cell and monocyte function after administration of thymopentin, as determined in vitro. After 3 months, 3 patients in the placebo and 2 patients in the thymopentin group had antibody titers greater than 10 U/l. In both groups only patients with normal or slightly impaired monocyte function responded to vaccination. Thus, we were not able to demonstrate a beneficial effect of thymopentin on hepatitis B vaccination in nonresponders on chronic hemodialysis. Furthermore, functional tests were not able to identify a subpopulation of uremic nonresponders who would benefit from thymopentin.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

Uremic serum inhibits monocyte-dependent, but not interleukin-2-dependent steps of T cell proliferation.

We examined the influence of uremic serum on antigen receptor triggered T cell proliferation in dialysis patients with impaired immune function, i.e., 12 nonresponders to hepatitis B vaccination. The dialysis patients showed a monocyte dysfunction and an increased responsiveness to interleukin 2 (IL-2) according to our previous findings. In vitro the addition of IL-2 completely reconstituted the defect. Uremic serum inhibited monocyte-dependent T cell proliferation of patients and of healthy controls. Contrary, monocyte-independent steps of T cell proliferation were not impaired by uremic serum. When IL-2 was added to cultures, the T cell proliferation in the presence of uremic serum was even enhanced. We conclude that uremic immunodeficiency may be enhanced by soluble factors present in uremic serum which inhibit monocyte-dependent steps of T cell proliferation.

Adult↗

Low-dose interleukin-2 induces systemic immune responses against HBsAg in immunodeficient non-responders to hepatitis B vaccination.

A metabolic monocyte defect appears to correlate with non-responsiveness to hepatitis B vaccine in many patients on haemodialysis. This defect prevents production of interleukin-2 during T-cell activation after antigen contact. Receptors for interleukin-2 are, however, expressed in greater numbers than in healthy subjects or uraemic responders to hepatitis B vaccination. In this study, ten uraemic patients, previous non-responders to vaccination against hepatitis B, were revaccinated with the same vaccine combined with one intramuscular injection (2.5 x 10(5) U) of natural human interleukin-2. Systemic production of antibodies against hepatitis B surface antigen was initiated in those immunodeficient patients whose cellular interleukin-2 receptor levels were found to be enhanced.

Adult↗

Triggering of the alternative pathway of human T cell activation involves members of the T 200 family of glycoproteins.

The present report describes functional characteristics of a monoclonal antibody (mAb), TA/211, which is reactive with a common determinant of the human CD45 molecules. When added to purified testing human T cells, TA/211, which is itself not mitogenic, leads to a strong proliferative response in combination with submitogenic concentrations of anti-T11(2) plus anti-T11(3) mAb. Interestingly, while amplifying anti-CD2-mediated immune responses, T cell activation induced through triggering of the CD3 molecule is not enhanced by TA/211, indicating that the triggering signal provided through CD45 is restricted to alternative pathway activation. Employing T cell subsets negatively selected for the expression of CD45R molecules defined by the mAb anti-2H4 or UCHL1, respectively, it is demonstrated that resting T cells expressing the 2H4 molecules proliferate much stronger to TA/211 than the UCHL1+ T cell subset. Together with the finding that the 2H4+ T cell subset can be activated by the concomitant binding of anti-CD2 antibodies plus anti-2H4, these data strongly suggest that the high molecular weight species of CD45 expressed by unprimed T cells are themselves involved in T cell activation via the alternative pathway.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

Lymphocyte mediated cell lysis.

Lymphocyte-mediated cell lysis represents an important immunologic effector mechanism involved in defense against viral infections, allograft rejection, and tumor surveillance. Moreover, regulatory T cell interactions within the immune system are based, at least in part, on molecular events related to this function. The multiplicity of effector cell populations that can mediate cytotoxicity, the cell/cell interaction determinants which they require for execution of their activities, and molecular events underlying the lytic process itself, as elucidated recently, are the subjects of the present review article.

Cytotoxicity, Immunologic↗

The alternative pathway of T cell activation: biology, pathophysiology, and perspectives for immunopharmacology.

The application of monoclonal antibodies and recombinant mediators to studies of T cell activation has led to a new concept regarding the central mechanisms underlying specific immune responses in man. Stimulation of human T cells to express their functional programs with regard to immunoregulatory activities and effector functions can be mediated through several distinct mechanisms or pathways. We report on the recently discovered T3-Ti antigen receptor independent mode of human T cell activation, namely, the T11-mediated "alternative pathway." Recent evidence supports the notion that this pathway plays an important role in the immune response in man and that failure to activate T cells through T11 is associated with immunodeficiency. The characterization of functional epitopes of the T11 molecule along with functional investigations on patients suffering from etiologically different cases of immunodeficiency provides important perspectives for future pharmacological interventions into the human immune system. It seems likely that immunologic disorders such as autoimmune disease and immunodeficiencies result from overamplification or blockades of the "alternative pathway of T cell activation" and that the T11 epitope represents a potential site for selective inhibition of the "alternative pathway of T cell activation," e.g., by means of synthetic peptide analogues. Conversely, high affinity ligands to the T11 epitope might be suitable for immunostimulation immunodeficiencies that result from circulating blocking factors of the LFA-3/T11 interaction.

Animals↗

Granulocyte/macrophage colony-stimulating factor induces interleukin 1 production by human polymorphonuclear neutrophils.

The purpose of this study was to determine whether human polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN), which share a common cell lineage with macrophages, could produce factors such as IL-1. We show by Northern blot analysis and bioassays that PMN can be induced to accumulate mRNA specific for IL-1 alpha and IL-1 beta indistinguishable in size from IL-1 mRNA synthesized by activated human macrophages and consequently to release IL-1-like activity in their culture supernatants, that could be neutralized by a mAb to IL-1. The granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor was identified as a major physiologic inducer for PMN-IL-1.

Animals↗

Clonal analysis of human T lymphocytes infiltrating the liver in chronic active hepatitis B and primary biliary cirrhosis.

Human T lymphocytes infiltrating the liver in chronic active hepatitis B (CAH-B) and primary biliary cirrhosis were isolated from liver biopsy cores, cloned by limiting dilution technique and expanded in vitro. Phenotypic and functional analysis demonstrates that this tissue infiltrate represents a heterogeneous cell population. However, when compared to peripheral blood lymphocytes of the same patients, a marked enrichment for T8+ cytotoxic T cells was found to exist at a local site in both types of chronic liver disease. These data provide support for the notion that liver cell injury in CAH-B and PBC may be mediated by a common immunologic mechanism likely executed by cells of the T lineage.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

Interleukin 1 stimulates T lymphocytes to produce granulocyte-monocyte colony-stimulating factor.

T lymphocytes are thought to cooperatively interact with monocytes to produce colony-stimulating factors (CSF). However, little is known about monocyte-mediated signals leading to CSF-secretion by T lymphocytes, although soluble monocyte products have been implicated. We have employed monoclonal antibody anti-T3B covalently coupled to CnBr-activated Sepharose 4B beads, to show that multimeric ligation of T cell antigen receptor leads to T cell receptiveness to interleukin 1 (IL-1), as indicated by T cell production of CSF, which induces growth of myeloid progenitor cells into neutrophil, eosinophil, and monocyte colonies. To investigate the molecular basis of these findings, total RNA was extracted from T3B Sepharose-primed and IL-1-stimulated T lymphocytes and probed for granulocyte-monocyte-CSF (GM-CSF), granulocyte-CSF (G-CSF), and monocyte-CSF (M-CSF) mRNA. GM-CSF, but not G-CSF or M-CSF, messages were detected. Nuclear "run on" assays revealed that IL-1 action is effective primarily at the level of GM-CSF gene transcription. These results suggest a previously unrecognized role of IL-1 in the regulation of GM-CSF secretion by T cells.

Colony-Stimulating Factors↗

Purified lymphocyte function-associated antigen-3 and T11 target structure are active in CD2-mediated T cell stimulation.

In this study we have used cells expressing LFA-3 or T11TS, the human and sheep forms of the ligand of CD2, as well as the purified LFA-3 and T11TS molecules themselves to study their effects on T cell activation via the CD2-mediated "alternative pathway". Sheep red blood cells, which bind to CD2 via T11TS in E-rosette formation, and human autologous monocytes, which express the LFA-3 molecule, both induce proliferation of resting T cells in the presence of per se submitogenic concentrations of anti-T11(2) plus anti-T11(3) monoclonal antibodies (mAb). This effect is blocked by mAb to LFA-3, T11TS and CD2 known to inhibit CD2-ligand interaction. In addition, purified LFA-3 and T11TS, when added at ng amounts to cultures containing submitogenic concentrations of anti-T11(2 + 3) mAb, are also strongly mitogenic for resting human T cells. Thus, both LFA-3 and T11TS are potent co-stimulators of the alternative pathway of T cell activation but by themselves do not provide a mitogenic signal. This finding is discussed with regard to a physiological role of CD2-LFA-3 interaction in T cell activation.

Animals↗

Selective blockade of the antigen-receptor-mediated pathway of T cell activation in patients with impaired primary immune responses.

We investigated impaired cellular immune responses of individuals on chronic hemodialysis by using monoclonal antibodies that trigger differential pathways of T cell activation. Reduced cellular reactivity, which exists in a high proportion of such patients, can be attributed to a failure of the monocyte population to support the process of primary T cell activation in vitro. This defect results in a lack of interleukin 2 production, which is critically dependent on a monocyte-derived signal. In contrast, T lymphocyte function was found to be physiologic. Perhaps more important, the degree of monocyte dysfunction in vitro correlated with the same patients' in vivo responses to hepatitis B vaccination. Addition of recombinant human interleukin 2 fully reconstituted their deficient immune response in vitro.

Adult↗

Two pathways of T cell activation.

Monoclonal antibodies capable of exerting agonistic functions toward surface receptors of human T lymphocytes are employed to study discrete signals involved in T cell activation via two differential pathways (antigen-induced and "alternative" pathway of T cell activation). The studies to be reported demonstrate that these two modes of T cell triggering are independent of each other since the respective cell surface molecules with which T cells interact in the initiation of activation and the requirements for monokines are clearly distinct. Moreover, preliminary investigations of various types of secondary immunodeficiencies suggest that immunologic dysfunction can be attributed to blockades at particular levels of the activation cascade.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

T cell receptor triggering induces responsiveness to interleukin 1 and interleukin 2 but does not lead to T cell proliferation.

The antigen-like activity of monoclonal antibodies directed at the T3-Ti antigen receptor complex of human T lymphocytes was employed to study activation requirements of resting T cells. Efficient antigen recognition (signal 1) by T lymphocytes requires multimeric antigen receptor triggering because under appropriate experimental conditions soluble ligands do not produce this initial signal for T cell activation. The latter leads to receptiveness for both interleukin 1 (IL 1) and interleukin 2 (IL 2). Importantly, induction of proliferation requires an additional signal (signal 2), namely IL 1, which appears to be required to enable optimal secretion of IL 2. In contrast, presensitized T lymphocytes do not require IL 1 for IL 2 production. In this case, antigen receptor oligomerization is in itself sufficient to induce IL 2 receptor expression, and IL 2 secretion as well.

Adult↗

T lymphocyte control of autoreactivity: analysis with human T cell clones and limiting dilution culture.

To investigate cellular mechanisms controlling activated autoreactive T lymphocytes, a limiting dilution system was established employing cloned autoreactive major histocompatibility complex class II specific lymphocytes (a2/7) as stimulator cells for autologous peripheral blood mononuclear cells. At low responder/stimulator ratios, cytotoxic effector cells were generated capable of lysing clone a2/7. Importantly, within the population of cells mediating autocytotoxic effector function, differential specificities were found to exist. The generation of such autocytotoxic T lymphocytes appears to be inhibited by an additional population of cells circulating at lower frequency suggesting that autoreactivity is controlled at distinct levels by discrete functional cellular subsets.

Cell Communication↗