Split tolerance induced by the intrathymic adoptive transfer of thymocyte stem cells.

The intrathymic transfer of semiallogeneic CD4/CD8 double-negative (DN) thymocyte stem cells into irradiated host mice resulted in a transient state of chimerism in adoptive host thymus, spleen, and lymph nodes. Host-derived T cells, isolated from the thymus and periphery of the chimeric mice, were found to be specifically nonresponsive to the MHC antigens of the semiallogeneic DN donor in cytotoxicity assays. This nonresponsiveness was not permanent, but persisted as long as appreciable numbers of Thy-1 alloantigen-positive progeny of the DN donor cells could be detected in the spleen and lymph nodes of adoptive host mice. FACS sorting of DN donor cells before intrathymic transfer indicated that nonresponsiveness could be induced by Thy-1+ cells and was therefore not attributable to contaminating thymic macrophages, dendritic cells, or B cells. When FACS-sorted Thy-1+ (bm5 x bm12)F1 DN cells were transferred intrathymically into C57BL/6 hosts, nonresponsiveness to DN donor MHC class I but not class II alloantigen (split tolerance) was observed. These experiments were repeated using FACS-sorted Thy-1+ DN donor cells that were semiallogeneic to the irradiated adoptive host at either MHC class I or class II locus with similar results. Limiting dilution analysis showed that host-derived CTL precursors were tolerant of DN donor MHC class I alloantigen and no evidence for the involvement of suppressor T cells was found. The data indicate that murine thymocytes themselves are capable of tolerizing to MHC class I but not class II alloantigen after intrathymic transfer. The implications for intrathymic T cell differentiation and maintenance of self tolerance are discussed.

Transient expression of IL-2 receptor precedes the differentiation of immature thymocytes.

The growth of mature T lymphocytes after activation by antigen is regulated by the binding and endocytosis of interleukin-2 (IL-2). In the thymus, approximately 50% of adult thymocytes that carry neither the CD4 nor the CD8 antigen and day 14-15 fetal CD4-8- thymocytes express receptors for IL-2(IL-2R). The CD4-8- (double-negative) subpopulation of thymocytes contains the precursors of cells that can differentiate along an unknown pathway into thymocytes bearing either CD8 or CD4, with the characteristics of mature T lymphocytes. The basis for IL-2R expression by double-negative thymocytes is unclear as they appear to lack a functional T-cell receptor/CD3 complex through which activation of peripheral T cells is mediated. The argument for a role for IL-2 in thymocyte differentiation has also been complicated by conflicting reports on the inability or capability of double-negative thymocytes to respond to IL-2 in vitro. At present, both the nature of the stimuli within the thymic micro-environment which induce IL-2R expression and its relevance to thymocyte differentiation are not known. We show here that the IL-2R-bearing subset has a greater potential to differentiate into phenotypically mature T lymphocytes than do IL-2R-negative thymocytes. In addition, progeny of IL-2R-negative donor cells transiently express IL-2R in the thymuses of adoptive hosts before generating CD8 and/or CD4-positive thymocytes. These results identify the IL-2R-positive cells as a more differentiated double-negative thymocyte subset on the pathway to mature T lymphocytes.

Clonal analysis of cytolytic T lymphocyte-mediated lysis of target cells with inducible antigen expression: correlation between antigen density and requirement for Lyt-2/3 function.

The lysis by allospecific cytolytic T lymphocytes (CTL) of the BALB/c lymphoma ST-4.5, a cell line that can be induced by interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) to express increased amounts of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I antigens, was investigated. Culture of ST-4.5 in IFN-gamma increased the surface expression of Kd molecules from originally low levels and Dd from undetectable amounts by approximately fivefold as determined by fluorescence-activated cell sorter (FACS) analysis, whereas the levels of several other antigens (Ld, I-Ad, Thy-1, Lyt-2, L3T4, and LFA-1) were not affected. The lysis of ST-4.5 by Dd- and Ld-specific CTL clones correlated with the expression of those antigens on target cells as determined by both FACS and biochemical analysis. Lysis of ST-4.5 by CTL clones specific for Kd antigen fell into two distinct groups: those that could lyse targets cultured either normally or in IFN-gamma, and those that could only lyse targets that had been precultured in IFN-gamma. The apparent sensitivity to antigen exhibited by the Kd-specific CTL clones predicted their sensitivity to inhibition of target lysis by anti-Lyt-2/3 antibody. Those CTL clones that were only active against ST-4.5 expressing higher amounts of surface antigen (resulting from IFN-gamma preculture) were readily inhibited by anti-Lyt-2/3 antibody, whereas those CTL capable of lysing normally cultured targets having lower amounts of surface antigen were heterogeneous in their sensitivity to anti-Lyt-2/3; some were inhibitable, whereas others were resistant. In addition, another CTL clone that was resistant to inhibition by anti-Lyt-2/3 alone was readily inhibited by a synergistic combination of anti-Lyt-2/3 plus anti-Kd (but not anti-Dd or Ld) antibodies. These results indicate that CTL antigen receptor sensitivity to (or affinity for) antigen and the level of specific antigen expression by the target cell may both be important criteria in assessing Lyt-2/3 molecule function in CTL-mediated cytolysis. The function of recognition-associated molecules such as Lyt-2/3 may be to strengthen and increase the number of receptor-ligand binding events that facilitate CTL-target membrane interactions that lead to the lysis of the target cell.

Effect of prostaglandin E2 on the gamma-interferon induction of antigen-presenting ability in P388D1 cells and on IL-2 production by T-cell hybridomas.

The effect of prostaglandin E2 on the gamma-interferon (IFN-gamma)-mediated induction of Ia expression and antigen-presenting activity in macrophage cell lines was studied. Using a lymphokine preparation obtained from the T-cell hybridoma FS7-20.6.18 (known to produce interferon) to induce the expression of Ia in P388D1 cells, the influence of PGE2 on this phenomenon was studied. Screening of the cell cultures by indirect immunofluorescence using an anti-I-Ad monoclonal antibody confirmed the inhibitory effect of PGE2 in the induction of I-Ad. However, the inhibition of the antigen-presenting ability of these cells, as measured by their capacity to stimulate interleukin 2 (IL-2) production by antigen-specific, I-region-restricted (Ag/I) T-cell hybridomas, was more difficult to demonstrate and was only evident when using low concentrations of Ia-inducing lymphokines or when using "low avidity" T-cell hybridomas. The latter were distinguished by the limited response (in the form of IL-2 production) that was observed when they were tested with P388D1 cells that had been induced with IFN-gamma. By contrast, PGE2 had profound inhibitory effects on the ability of T-cell hybridomas to secrete IL-2 in response to Ag/I or concanavalin A. These results suggest that although PGE2 inhibits the full induction of Ia on macrophages, it has little effect on the induction of Ag/I presentation by the same cells, probably because most T cells require relatively low levels of Ia on the surface of presenting cells. T-cell responses to Ag/I are inhibited, however, because of the effects of PGE2 on the T cells themselves.

Antigen recognition by H-2-restricted T cells. II. A tryptic ovalbumin peptide that substitutes for processed antigen.

A 17-amino acid tryptic peptide of chicken ovalbumin, designated P323-339, that substituted for processed antigen when presented by glutaraldehyde prefixed accessory cells to specific I-restricted T hybridomas was characterized. The peptide antigen could not be demonstrated to have any specific or stable interactions with accessory cell Ia antigens by either direct binding or functional assays for inhibition of specific T cell activation. In addition, the T cell receptor for I-restricted antigen had no affinity for free antigen alone. A rabbit antibody specific for the antigenic peptide inhibited presentation when introduced before but not after binding of the peptide to accessory cells. These results extend our earlier finding that accessory cell-mediated processing of chicken ovalbumin can be completely explained by the fragmentation of the native molecule into smaller m.w. peptides, and suggests that if an antigen/Ia complex is important in T cell activation, it forms significantly only in the presence of the T cell receptor for I-restricted antigen.

Characterization of the gamma-interferon-mediated induction of antigen-presenting ability in P388D1 cells.

We characterized an assay system to study the lymphokine-mediated induction of antigen-presenting ability in P388D1 cells. The ability of lymphokine-induced P388D1 macrophages to present antigen plus Id was measured by their ability to induce interleukin 2 production by antigen-specific, Id-restricted T cell hybridomas in the presence of the appropriate antigen. The production of IL 2 by the T cell hybridomas is known to be dependent on the expression of Ia antigens by the antigen-presenting cells. The results obtained suggest that a factor present in the supernatant of the T cell hybridoma FS7-20.6.18 is responsible for inducing the appearance of I-Ad and I-Ed on P388D1, measured by immunofluorescence, and the ability of the cell to present antigen in association with I-Ad or I-Ed. The factor mediating the induction of antigen-presenting ability is thought to be gamma-interferon, because the hybridoma FS7-20.6.18 is known to produce this lymphokine and the factor is sensitive to pH 2 incubation. gamma-Interferon produced by recombinant DNA technology was found to induce antigen-presenting ability in this assay; however, alpha- and beta-interferon were inactive. This observation suggests a unique immunoregulatory role for gamma-interferon. Using many T cell hybridomas in the assay, we were able to distinguish three groups: a) high avidity hybridomas that respond to antigen presented by uninduced P388D1 but show an enhanced response to antigen plus induced P388D1; b) medium avidity hybridomas that do not respond to antigen presented by uninduced P388D1; and c) low avidity hybridomas that show a limited response to antigen presented by induced P388D1, but the response of which increases if the P388D1 cells are induced for longer periods of time. These different patterns of response are believed to be dependent on the Ia antigen density expressed by the gamma-interferon-induced presenting cells, and suggest that the T cell receptors for Ag/Id display marked heterogeneity in their avidities for Ag/Id.

Antigen recognition by H-2-restricted T cells. I. Cell-free antigen processing.

We examined the ability of a set of cloned chicken ovalbumin (cOVA)-specific, Id-restricted, T cell hybridomas to produce interleukin-2 in response to cOVA presented by the Ia+ B cell lymphoma line, A20-2J. Although viable A20-2J cells presented native, denatured, and fragmented cOVA more or less equally well, A20-2J cells that were glutaraldehyde-fixed could present only enzymatically or chemically fragmented cOVA. These results suggest that antigen fragmentation may be both necessary and sufficient to define accessory cell processing of soluble antigens so that they may be recognized in association with I-region molecules by T cells.