Icos gene disruption in non-obese diabetic mice elicits myositis associated with anti-troponin T3 autoantibodies.

AIMS: Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) are autoimmune inflammatory disorders leading to skeletal muscle weakness and disability. The pathophysiology of IIM is poorly understood due to the scarcity of animal disease models. Genetic deletion of Icos or Icosl (inducible T cell co-stimulator/ligand) in non-obese diabetic (NOD) mice leads to muscle disease. Our aim was to characterise Icos-/- NOD myopathy and to search for novel autoantibodies (aAbs) in this model. METHODS: Diabetes, weight, myopathy incidence/clinical score and grip strength were assessed over time. Locomotor activity was analysed with the Catwalk XT gait analysis system. Muscle histology was evaluated in haematoxylin/eosin and Sirius red-stained sections, and immune infiltrates were characterised by immunofluorescence and flow cytometry. 2D gel electrophoresis of muscle protein extracts and mass spectrometry were used to identify novel aAbs. NOD mice were immunised with troponin T3 (TNNT3) in incomplete Freund's adjuvant (IFA) and R848. An addressable laser bead immunoassay (ALBIA) was developed to measure aAb IgG serum levels. RESULTS: Icos-/- NOD mice did not exhibit diabetes but developed spontaneous progressive myositis with decreased muscle strength and altered locomotor activity. Muscle from these mice exhibited myofibre necrosis, myophagocytosis, central nuclei, fibrosis and perimysial and endomysial cell infiltrates with macrophages and T cells. We identified anti-TNNT3 aAbs in diseased mice. Immunisation of NOD mice with murine TNNT3 protein led to myositis development, supporting its pathophysiological role. CONCLUSIONS: These data show that Icos-/- NOD mice represent a spontaneous model of myositis and the discovery of anti-TNNT3 aAb suggests a new autoantigen in this model.

Systemic administration of orexin A ameliorates established experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by diminishing neuroinflammation.

BACKGROUND: Orexins (hypocretins, Hcrt) A and B are GPCR-binding hypothalamic neuropeptides known to regulate sleep/wake states and feeding behavior. A few studies have shown that orexin A exhibits anti-inflammatory and neuroprotective properties, suggesting that it might provide therapeutic effects in inflammatory and neurodegenerative diseases like multiple sclerosis (MS). In MS, encephalitogenic Th1 and Th17 cells trigger an inflammatory response in the CNS destroying the myelin sheath. Here, we investigated the effects of peripheral orexin A administration to mice undergoing experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), a widely used model of MS. METHODS: Mice were subcutaneously immunized with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein peptide (MOG)35-55 in CFA. Mice were treated intraperitoneally for five consecutive days with either PBS or 300 µg of orexin A starting at a moderate EAE score. Molecular, cellular, and histological analysis were performed by real-time PCR, ELISA, flow cytometry, and immunofluorescence. RESULTS: Orexin A strongly ameliorated ongoing EAE, limiting the infiltration of pathogenic CD4+ T lymphocytes, and diminishing chemokine (MCP-1/CCL2 and IP-10/CXCL10) and cytokine (IFN-γ (Th1), IL-17 (Th17), TNF-α, IL-10, and TGF-ß) expressions in the CNS. Moreover, orexin A treatment was neuroprotective, decreasing demyelination, astrogliosis, and microglial activation. Despite its strong local therapeutic effects, orexin A did not impair peripheral draining lymph node cell proliferation and Th1/Th17 cytokine production in response to MOG35-55 in vitro. CONCLUSIONS: Peripherally-administered orexin A ameliorated EAE by reducing CNS neuroinflammation. These results suggest that orexins may represent new therapeutic candidates that should be further investigated for MS treatment.

In vivo pathogenicity of IgG from patients with anti-SRP or anti-HMGCR autoantibodies in immune-mediated necrotising myopathy.

OBJECTIVES: In autoimmunity, autoantibodies (aAb) may be simple biomarkers of disease or true pathogenic effectors. A form of idiopathic inflammatory myopathy associated with anti-signal recognition particle (SRP) or anti-3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGCR) aAb has been individualised and is referred to as immune-mediated necrotising myopathy (IMNM). The level of aAb correlates with IMNM activity and disease may respond to immunosuppression, suggesting that they are pathogenic. We aimed to evaluate the pathogenicity of IgG from patients with anti-SRP or anti-HMGCR aAb in vivo by developing the first mouse model of IMNM. METHODS: IgG from patients suffering from anti-SRP or anti-HMGCR associated IMNM were passively transferred to wild-type, Rag2-/- or complement C3-/- mice. Muscle deficiency was evaluated by muscle strength on electrostimulation and grip test. Histological analyses were performed after haematoxylin/eosin staining or by immunofluorescence or immunohistochemistry analysis. Antibody levels were quantified by addressable laser bead assay (ALBIA). RESULTS: Passive transfer of IgG from patients suffering from IMNM to C57BL/6 or Rag2-/- mice provoked muscle deficiency. Pathogenicity of aAb was reduced in C3-/- mice while increased by supplementation with human complement. Breakage of tolerance by active immunisation with SRP or HMGCR provoked disease. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that patient-derived anti-SRP+ and anti-HMGCR+ IgG are pathogenic towards muscle in vivo through a complement-mediated mechanism, definitively establishing the autoimmune character of IMNM. These data support the use of plasma exchanges and argue for evaluating complement-targeting therapies in IMNM.

Oral-tolerization Prevents Immune Responses and Improves Transgene Persistence Following Gene Transfer Mediated by Adeno-associated Viral Vector.

Gene therapy represents a feasible strategy to treat inherited monogenic diseases and intramuscular (i.m.) injection of recombinant adeno-associated viral (AAV) vector is now recognized as a convenient and safe method of gene transfer. However, this approach is hampered by immune responses directed against the vector and against the transgenic protein. We used here to reproduce this situation a mouse model where robust immune responses are induced following injection of an AAV vector coding for an immunogenic transgenic protein. We show that prophylactic oral administration of the immunogenic protein before AAV-mediated gene transfer completely prevented antibody formation and cytotoxic CD8(+) T-cell response. Consistently, prophylactic oral-tolerization considerably improved long-term transgene persistence and expression. Mechanistically, inhibition of the cytotoxic immune response involved abortive proliferation of antigen-specific cytotoxic CD8(+) T cells, upregulation of the PD-1 immunoregulatory molecule, downregulation of the Bcl-2 antiapoptotic factor, and their deletion in the context of AAV-mediated gene transfer. Hence, gene therapy may represent an ideal situation where oral-tolerization can be adopted before or at the same time as vector injection to efficiently prevent deleterious immune responses directed against the transgenic protein.

Development of optimized cytotoxicity assays for assessing the antitumor potential of CAR-T cells.

CAR-T cells are T cells expressing a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) rendering them capable of killing tumor cells after recognition of a target antigen. CD19 CAR-T cells have revolutionized the treatment of hematological malignancies. Their function is typically assessed by cytotoxicity assays using human allogeneic cell lines expressing the target antigen CD19 such as Nalm-6. However, an alloreactive reaction is observed with these cells, leading to a CD19-independent killing. To address this issue, we developed a fluorescence microscopy-based potency assay using murine target cells to provide an optimized cytotoxicity assay with enhanced specificity towards CD19. Murine NIH/3T3 (3T3) fibroblast-derived cell line and EL4 T-cell lymphoma-derived cell line were used as targets (no xenoreactivity was observed after coculture with human T cells). 3T3 and EL4 cells were engineered to express eGFP (enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein) and CD19 or CD22 using retroviral vectors. CD19 CAR-T cells and non-transduced (NT) control T cells were produced from several donors. After 4 h or 24 h, alloreactive cytotoxicity against CD19+ Nalm-6-GFP cells and CD19- Jurkat-GFP cells was observed with NT or CAR-T cells. In the same conditions, CAR-T but not NT cells specifically killed CD19+ but not CD19- 3T3-GFP or EL4-GFP cells. Both microscope- and flow cytometry-based assays revealed as sensitive as impedance-based assay. Using flow cytometry, we could further determine that CAR-T cells had mostly a stem cell-like memory phenotype after contact with EL4 target cells. Therefore, CD19+ 3T3-GFP or EL4-GFP cells and fluorescence microscopy- or flow cytometry-based assays provide convenient, sensitive and specific tools to evaluate CAR-T cell function with no alloreactivity.

IFNγ causes mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress in myositis.

Idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIMs) are severe autoimmune diseases with poorly understood pathogenesis and unmet medical needs. Here, we examine the role of interferon γ (IFNγ) using NOD female mice deficient in the inducible T cell co-stimulator (Icos), which have previously been shown to develop spontaneous IFNγ-driven myositis mimicking human disease. Using muscle proteomic and spatial transcriptomic analyses we reveal profound myofiber metabolic dysregulation in these mice. In addition, we report muscle mitochondrial abnormalities and oxidative stress in diseased mice. Supporting a pathogenic role for oxidative stress, treatment with a reactive oxygen species (ROS) buffer compound alleviated myositis, preserved muscle mitochondrial ultrastructure and respiration, and reduced inflammation. Mitochondrial anomalies and oxidative stress were diminished following anti-IFNγ treatment. Further transcriptomic analysis in IIMs patients and human myoblast in vitro studies supported the link between IFNγ and mitochondrial dysfunction observed in mice. These results suggest that mitochondrial dysfunction, ROS and inflammation are interconnected in a self-maintenance loop, opening perspectives for mitochondria therapy and/or ROS targeting drugs in myositis.

Prevention of Anti-HMGCR Immune-Mediated Necrotising Myopathy by C5 Complement Inhibition in a Humanised Mouse Model.

Introduction: immune-mediated necrotising myopathy (IMNM) is associated with pathogenic anti-signal recognition particle (SRP) or 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase (HMGCR) antibodies, at least partly through activation of the classical pathway of the complement. We evaluated zilucoplan, an investigational drug, and a macrocyclic peptide inhibitor of complement component 5 (C5), in humanized mouse models of IMNM. Methods: purified immunoglobulin G (IgG) from an anti-HMGCR+ IMNM patient was co-injected intraperitoneally with human complement in C57BL/6, C5-deficient B10 (C5def) and Rag2 deficient (Rag2-/-) mice. Zilucoplan was administered subcutaneously in a preventive or interventional paradigm, either injected daily throughout the duration of the experiment in C57BL/6 and C5def mice or 8 days after disease induction in Rag2-/- mice. Results: prophylactic administration of zilucoplan prevented muscle strength loss in C5def mice (anti-HMGCR+ vs. anti-HMGCR+ + zilucoplan: p = 0.0289; control vs. anti-HMGCR+ + zilucoplan: p = 0.4634) and wild-type C57BL/6 (anti-HMGCR+ vs. anti-HMGCR+ + zilucoplan: p = 0.0002; control vs. anti-HMGCR+ + zilucoplan: p = 0.0939) with corresponding reduction in C5b-9 deposits on myofibres and number of regenerated myofibres. Interventional treatment of zilucoplan after disease induction reduced the complement deposits and number of regenerated myofibres in muscles of Rag2-/- mice, although to a lesser extent. In this latter setting, C5 inhibition did not significantly ameliorate muscle strength. Conclusion: Early administration of zilucoplan prevents the onset of myopathy at the clinical and histological level in a humanized mouse model of IMNM.

Efficiency of laryngeal motor nerve repair is greater with bulbar than with mucosal olfactory ensheathing cells.

The real ability of OECs provided by olfactory mucosa cultures (OM-OECs) and those from olfactory bulb cultures (OB-OECs) must be better characterized in order to propose their future clinical application. Therefore, we used a lesion of the vagus nerve (VN), which constitutes a severe motor denervation due to long distance of the muscular targets (4.5 cm). We performed a section/anastomosis surgery of the VN, at the third tracheal ring. Then, OM-OECs and OB-OECs were injected in matrigel around the lesion site. Three months after surgery, laryngeal muscle activity, synkinesis phenomena and latency were evaluated by videolaryngoscopy and electromyography recordings. To complete these procedures, axonal morphometric study of the right recurrent nerve was performed to assess axonal regrowth and tracking of green fluorescent protein positive cells was performed. Recurrent nerve is the motor branch innervating the laryngeal muscles, and is located distally to the lesion, near the muscular targets (0.7 cm). These analyses permitted to compare the ability of these two populations to improve functional recovery and axonal regrowth. Our results show that, OM-OECs improved electrical muscular activity and nervous conduction with significant tissue healing but induced aberrant movement and poor functional recovery. In contrast, OB-OECs induced a partial functional recovery associated with an increase in the number of myelinated fibers and nervous conduction. Our study suggests that, as recently reported in a microarray study, OM-OECs and OB-OECs express different properties. In particular, OM-OECs could regulate inflammation processes and extracellular matrix formation but have a poor regeneration potential, whereas, OB-OECs could improve functional recovery by inducing targeted axonal regrowth.

Transplantation of olfactory ensheathing cells promotes axonal regeneration and functional recovery of peripheral nerve lesion in rats.

INTRODUCTION: Olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) hold promise for cell therapy because they may promote regeneration of the central nervous system. However, OECs have been less studied after peripheral nerve injury (PNI). The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effect of OEC transplantation on a severe sciatic nerve (SN) lesion. METHODS: OECs were injected in rats after section and 2-cm resection of the SN. RESULTS: Three months after therapy, muscle strength and morphometric studies showed complete restoration of the contractile properties of the gastrocnemius and complete repair of the SN. Immunohistochemistry and RT-PCR studies indicated an increase in the presence of neurotrophic factors. Interestingly, tracking of green fluorescent protein (GFP)-positive OECs showed that no OECs were present in the SN. DISCUSSION: Our results demonstrate that, after severe PNI, OECs have remarkable potential for nerve regeneration by creating a favorable microenvironment.

Shared blood and muscle CD8+ T-cell expansions in inclusion body myositis.

Inclusion body myositis (IBM) is the most frequent inflammatory myopathy over the age of fifty. Pathological findings suggest that two processes may contribute to IBM pathogenesis: a primary degenerative process affecting muscle fibre and/or an autoimmune process mediated by major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class-I-restricted cytotoxic CD8+ T cells. Previous studies have demonstrated that muscle-infiltrating CD8+ T cells in IBM display restricted expression of T-cell receptor (TCR)-BV families or evidenced oligoclonal T-cell expansions. This study was performed to investigate whether blood T cells similarly exhibit clonal expansions due to the recirculation of muscle-infiltrating T cells in the periphery. For this, we studied the T-cell repertoire of 17 IBM patients by complementarity-determining-region (CDR) 3 length distribution (immunoscope) analysis of TCR-B transcripts. Mean age was 68 years (range 53-88) and mean duration of the disease was 6.5 years (2-20). Oligoclonal T-cell expansions were observed in the blood of IBM patients. The quantitative average perturbation D index was significantly increased in IBM patients [D = 13.7% +/- 1.2%, mean +/- standard error of measurement (SEM)] as compared with 17 age-matched controls suffering from connective tissue diseases not associated with T-cell repertoire perturbation, that is, dermatomyositis (DM) and systemic sclerosis (9.3 +/- 0.6%, P < 0.005). Nevertheless, there was no correlation between the level of blood perturbation and muscle inflammation. Sorting experiments showed that these perturbations were due to oligoclonal expansions of CD8+ T cells. In the three IBM patients analysed, we could relate the blood expansions to T-cell clones also found in muscle. The clonally expanded blood T cells dramatically responded to interleukin-2 (IL-2) in vitro, suggesting that they had been primed in vivo, presumably in response to yet unknown muscle auto-antigens. Together, our results indicate that clonally expanded muscle-infiltrating CD8+ T cells re-circulate in the blood and support the concept of a CD8+ T-cell-mediated autoimmune component in IBM, similarly to what is observed in polymyositis (PM).

Induction of Hematopoietic Microchimerism by Gene-Modified BMT Elicits Antigen-Specific B and T Cell Unresponsiveness toward Gene Therapy Products.

BACKGROUND: Gene therapy is a promising treatment option for hemophilia and other protein deficiencies. However, immune responses against the transgene product represent an obstacle to safe and effective gene therapy, urging for the implementation of tolerization strategies. Induction of a hematopoietic chimerism via bone marrow transplantation (BMT) is a potent means for inducing immunological tolerance in solid organ transplantation. OBJECTIVES: We reasoned, here, that the same viral vector could be used, first, to transduce BM cells for inducing chimerism-associated transgene-specific immune tolerance and, second, for correcting protein deficiencies by vector-mediated systemic production of the deficient coagulation factor. METHODS: Evaluation of strategies to induce B and T cell tolerance was performed using ex vivo gene transfer with lentiviral (LV) vectors encoding coagulation factor IX (FIX) or the SIINFEKL epitope of ovalbumin. Following induction of microchimerism via BMT, animals were challenged with in vivo gene transfer with LV vectors. RESULTS: The experimental approach prevented humoral immune response against FIX, resulting in persistence of therapeutic levels of circulating FIX, after LV-mediated gene transfer in vivo. In an ovalbumin model, we also demonstrated that this approach effectively tolerized the CD8+ T cell compartment in an antigen-specific manner. CONCLUSION: These results provide the proof-of-concept that inducing a microchimerism by gene-modified BMT is a powerful tool to provide transgene-specific B and T cell tolerance in a gene therapy setting.

Restoration of anal sphincter function after myoblast cell therapy in incontinent rats.

Fecal incontinence (FI) remains a socially isolating condition with profound impact on quality of life for which autologous myoblast cell therapy represents an attractive treatment option. We developed an animal model of FI and investigated the possibility of improving sphincter function by intrasphincteric injection of syngeneic myoblasts. Several types of anal cryoinjuries were evaluated on anesthetized Fischer rats receiving analgesics. The minimal lesion yielding sustainable anal sphincter deficiency was a 90° cryoinjury of the sphincter, repeated after a 24-h interval. Anal sphincter pressure was evaluated longitudinally by anorectal manometry under local electrostimulation. Myoblasts were prepared using a protocol mimicking a clinical-grade process and further transduced with a GFP-encoding lentiviral vector before intrasphincteric injection. Experimental groups were uninjured controls, cryoinjured + PBS, and cryoinjured + myoblasts (different doses or injection site). Myoblast injection was well tolerated. Transferred myoblasts expressing GFP integrated into the sphincter and differentiated in situ into dystrophin-positive mature myofibers. Posttreatment sphincter pressures increased over time. At day 60, pressures in the treated group were significantly higher than those of PBS-injected controls and not significantly different from those of normal rats. Longitudinal follow-up showed stability of the therapeutic effect on sphincter function over a period of 6 months. Intrasphincteric myoblast injections at the lesion borders were equally as effective as intralesion administration, but an injection opposite to the lesion was not. These results provide proof of principle for myoblast cell therapy to treat FI in a rat model. This strategy is currently being evaluated in humans in a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial.

Chromosomal instability but lack of transformation in human myoblast preparations.

Genetic alterations have recently been described as emerging during the culture of embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells, raising concerns about their safety in future clinical use. Myoblasts are adult stem cells with important therapeutic potential that have been used in clinical trials for almost 20 years, but their genome integrity has not yet been established. Here we produced 10 human myoblast preparations and investigated their genomic stability. At the third passage, half of the preparations had a normal karyotype and half showed one to four alterations/30 metaphases. Chromosome 2 trisomy was found in 1-2/30 metaphases and/or 2/100 nuclei by FISH in 3/10 samples, and there was no other recurrent anomaly. When prolonging cultures, these erratic abnormalities were never associated with a growth advantage. Cellular senescence was manifested in all samples by growth arrest before passage 15. Expression of TERT was always negative. Molecular analysis of individual p53 transcripts did not reveal tumorigenic mutations. CGH array (10 samples) and exome sequencing (one sample) failed to detect copy number variations or accumulation of mutations, respectively. Myoblasts did not grow either in soft agar or in vivo after injection in immunodeficient mice. Hence, occasional genomic abnormalities may occur during myoblast culture but are not associated with risk of transformation.

Potential of olfactory ensheathing cells from different sources for spinal cord repair.

Spinal cord injury (SCI) induces a permanent disability in patients. To this day no curative treatment can be proposed to restore lost functions. Therefore, extensive experimental studies have been conducted to induce recovery after SCI. One of the most promising therapies is based on the use of olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs). OECs can be obtained from either the olfactory bulbs (OB-OECs) or from olfactory mucosa (OM-OECs), involving a less invasive approach for autotransplantation. However the vast majority of experimental transplantations have been focusing on OB-OECs although the OM represents a more accessible source of OECs. Importantly, the ability of OM-OECs in comparison to OB-OECs to induce spinal cord recovery in the same lesion paradigm has never been described. We here present data using a multiparametric approach, based on electrophysiological, behavioral, histological and magnetic resonance imaging experiments on the repair potential of OB-OECs and OM-OECs from either primary or purified cultures after a severe model of SCI. Our data demonstrate that transplantation of OECs obtained from OB or OM induces electrophysiological and functional recovery, reduces astrocyte reactivity and glial scar formation and improves axonal regrowth. We also show that the purification step is essential for OM-OECs while not required for OB-OECs. Altogether, our study strongly indicates that transplantation of OECs from OM represents the best benefit/risk ratio according to the safety of access of OM and the results induced by transplantations of OM-OECs. Indeed, purified OM-OECs in addition to induce recovery can integrate and survive up to 60 days into the spinal cord. Therefore, our results provide strong support for these cells as a viable therapy for SCI.

Immunological tolerance to muscle autoantigens involves peripheral deletion of autoreactive CD8+ T cells.

Muscle potentially represents the most abundant source of autoantigens of the body and can be targeted by a variety of severe autoimmune diseases. Yet, the mechanisms of immunological tolerance toward muscle autoantigens remain mostly unknown. We investigated this issue in transgenic SM-Ova mice that express an ovalbumin (Ova) neo-autoantigen specifically in skeletal muscle. We previously reported that antigen specific CD4(+) T cell are immunologically ignorant to endogenous Ova in this model but can be stimulated upon immunization. In contrast, Ova-specific CD8(+) T cells were suspected to be either unresponsive to Ova challenge or functionally defective. We now extend our investigations on the mechanisms governing CD8(+) tolerance in SM-Ova mice. We show herein that Ova-specific CD8(+) T cells are not detected upon challenge with strongly immunogenic Ova vaccines even after depletion of regulatory T cells. Ova-specific CD8(+) T cells from OT-I mice adoptively transferred to SM-Ova mice started to proliferate in vivo, acquired CD69 and PD-1 but subsequently down-regulated Bcl-2 and disappeared from the periphery, suggesting a mechanism of peripheral deletion. Peripheral deletion of endogenous Ova-specific cells was formally demonstrated in chimeric SM-Ova mice engrafted with bone marrow cells containing T cell precursors from OT-I TCR-transgenic mice. Thus, the present findings demonstrate that immunological tolerance to muscle autoantigens involves peripheral deletion of autoreactive CD8(+) T cells.

Co-transplantation of olfactory ensheathing cells from mucosa and bulb origin enhances functional recovery after peripheral nerve lesion.

Olfactory ensheathing cells (OECs) represent an interesting candidate for cell therapy and could be obtained from olfactory mucosa (OM-OECs) or olfactory bulbs (OB-OECs). Recent reports suggest that, depending on their origin, OECs display different functional properties. We show here the complementary and additive effects of co-transplanting OM-OECs and OB-OECs after lesion of a peripheral nerve. For this, a selective motor denervation of the laryngeal muscles was performed by a section/anastomosis of the recurrent laryngeal nerve (RLN). Two months after surgery, recovery of the laryngeal movements and synkinesis phenonema were analyzed by videolaryngoscopy. To complete these assessments, measure of latency and potential duration were determined by electrophysiological recordings and myelinated nerve fiber profiles were defined based on toluidine blue staining. To explain some of the mechanisms involved, tracking of GFP positive OECs was performed. It appears that transplantation of OM-OECs or OB-OECs displayed opposite abilities to improve functional recovery. Indeed, OM-OECs increased recuperation of laryngeal muscles activities without appropriate functional recovery. In contrast, OB-OECs induced some functional recovery by enhancing axonal regrowth. Importantly, co-transplantation of OM-OECs and OB-OECs supported a major functional recovery, with reduction of synkinesis phenomena. This study is the first which clearly demonstrates the complementary and additive properties of OECs obtained from olfactory mucosa and olfactory bulb to improve functional recovery after transplantation in a nerve lesion model.

Long-term persistence of clonally expanded T cells in patients with polymyositis.

Polymyositis is a CD8(+) T-cell-mediated disease. T-cell clonal expansions are observed at disease onset, but little is known about their persistence over time. Qualitative and quantitative spectratyping demonstrated that PM relapse features dramatically perturbed blood T-cell repertoires but is not associated with the emergence of new T-cell clones. It is striking that patients in remission also maintained all their T-cell repertoire abnormalities. The clonally expanded T-cells displayed a memory phenotype, expressed intracellular perforin, and dramatically responded to IL-2, showing a potential to be reactivated upon appropriate conditions. These results indicate that persistent T-cell clonal expansion is an important feature of polymyositis.