Unique characteristics of lacrimal glands as a part of mucosal immune network: high frequency of IgA-committed B-1 cells and NK1.1+ alphabeta T cells.

PURPOSE: Immunologic characterization of IgA-committed B-1 and B-2 cells, and unique subsets of T cells isolated from the murine lacrimal gland (LG), the primary exocrine tissue for the ocular surface, which is considered to be a part of the mucosal immune system. METHODS: Single cells were obtained from LGs of C57BL/6 mice by the enzyme dissociation method using collagenase type IV. Samples underwent flow cytometric analysis to characterize the unique subsets of T and B cells. To test the effectiveness of ocular vaccination, mice were immunized ocularly or nasally with cholera toxin (CT; 10 microg/mouse) suspended in phosphate-buffered saline. Antigen-specific immune responses were determined by isotype and CT-specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and enzyme-linked immunospot (ELISPOT) assay. RESULTS: When mononuclear cells (MC) isolated from LG samples were examined by flow cytometry, approximately 28% of cells were characterized as B220+ B cells. Because surface IgA+ (sIgA+) B cells develop from B-1 and B-2 lineages, it was important to examine which subset of B cells gives rise to LG sIgA+ B cells. Examination of the MC isolated from LG samples showed that approximately 4% of cells were sIgA+ B cells. Furthermore, nearly all these sIgA+ B cells (97.5%) belonged to the B-1 lineage, especially the B-1a cell line (B220low, CD5+). Of the isolated CD3+ T cells, 75% were alpha(beta) and 25% were gamma(delta)T-cell receptor positive. The proportion of NK1.1+ alpha(beta) T cells was higher (3%) in LG samples than in submandibular gland samples (0.5%). Ocular immunization with CT-induced antigen-specific mucosal (e.g., found in tear-wash and saliva samples) and systemic (e.g., serum) immune responses. The magnitude of antigen-specific antibody responses was comparable to those induced by nasal immunization. CONCLUSIONS: These results show that LG contains unique subsets of B (e.g., sIgA+ B-1 cells) and T (e.g., NK1.1+ alpha(beta)T cells) cells. Furthermore, as a part of the mucosal immune barrier, the LG is an important immunologic tissue for the ocular surface.

Ten years' surveillance of viral conjunctivitis in Sapporo, Japan.

BACKGROUND: We set out to establish the epidemiology of viral conjunctivitis over a 10-year period in Sapporo, northern Japan. METHODS: A total of 965 patients with clinically suspected viral conjunctivitis during the 10-year period from 1985 to 1994 in Sapporo were evaluated. RESULTS: Among the 965 patients, cumulative frequency of adenovirus (Ad) was 721 (75%). The dominant serotype of Ad changed with time; each serotype peaked at 3- to 5-year intervals. Adenoviral conjunctivitis occurred most often in July and August each year. Ad3 and Ad4 were predominantly identified in patients 30-39 years old. No enterovirus 70 has been detected. Herpes simplex virus (HSV) and Chlamydia trachomatis had no significant peak. HSV was isolated throughout the year, and C. trachomatis had two peaks of detection: in March and from July to September. HSV and C. trachomatis were predominantly detected in patients 20-29 years old. CONCLUSION: In this study, the main etiological agent of viral conjunctivitis in Sapporo, Japan, was Ad; however, attention should be paid to non-adenoviral agents, such as HSV and C. trachomatis, as possible causes of acute conjunctivitis.

Genome typing of adenovirus type 34 isolated in two cases of conjunctivitis in Sapporo, Japan.

Two cases of conjunctivitis caused by adenovirus type 34 (Ad34) are reported. The isolates were identified as Ad34 by the neutralization test and the PCR-sequence method of the hexon gene but as Ad14 by PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. The genome types of these two isolates were identical to that of Ad34a.

Rapid diagnosis of adenoviral conjunctivitis by PCR and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis.

To detect and identify adenovirus (Ad), we used a combination of PCR and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis. Nested PCR with two primer sets that hybridize to the conserved region for hexon proteins of 14 prototypes of Ad, Ad serotype 1 (Ad1) to Ad8, -11, -14, -19, -37, -40, and -41, amplified a 956-bp DNA fragment. The amplified fragments from the 14 prototypes were completely differentiated with a combination of three restriction endonucleases, EcoT14I, HaeIII, and HintI. We applied this new method for 127 samples of conjunctival scrapings from patients with conjunctivitis and compared the results with those obtained with the combination of culture isolation and a neutralization test (NT). PCR gave a positive result in 69 of 127 cases (54.3%), while only 61 of the 127 samples (48.0%) tested positive by culture isolation. Compared with isolation, the PCR method had a sensitivity of 100% (61 of 61). Positive PCR samples were further classified as Ad37 (59.5%), -3(31.9%), -11 (4.3%), -8 (2.9%), and -4 (1.4%) by PCR-RFLP analysis. Of eight samples that were PCR positive and culture isolation negative, six were Ad37 and two were Ad8 by PCR-RFLP analysis. These differentiations of isolation-positive samples were identical to the results obtained by the NT. It took only 3 days to detect and identify Ad by PCR-RFLP analysis, whereas it took at least 3 weeks by culture isolation and NT. Our newly developed method of detecting and typing human Ad by PCR-RFLP analysis is more sensitive, accurate, and rapid than the conventional method of culture isolation and an NT.

Genetic characterization of adenovirus strains isolated from patients with acute conjunctivitis in the city of São Paulo, Brazil.

Genome analysis was carried out on adenovirus strains isolated from patients with acute follicular conjunctivitis in the city of São Paulo, Brazil. Eighteen conjunctival scrapings, collected between December 1993 and March 1994, were analyzed by two methods: a combination of polymerase chain reaction with restriction fragment length polymorphism and viral DNA restriction analysis, carried out using 10 restriction endonucleases: BamHI, BglI, BglII, HindIII, KpnI, SacI, SalI, SmaI, XbaI, and XhoI. Among 11 adenovirus detected by cell culture isolation, nine were Ad8, and two were Ad7. By restriction analysis the Ad8 isolates were typed as two new variants-Ad8/D11 (seven of nine samples) and Ad8/D12 (two of nine samples). Ad7 isolates were identified as a subtype of the widespread genome type Ad7b and the virulent type Ad7h, a predominant genome type circulating in Argentina, Chile, and Uruguay but absent in Brazil until 1991.