Immunobiology of rat dendritic cells:

Dendritic cells (DC) are known to be the most efficient antigen presenting cells (APCs) and have the capacity to stimulate naïve T-cells and initiate immune response. DC originate from bone marrow hematopoietic stem cells and are less than 1% of circulating blood mononuclear cells. DC induce peripheral tolerance via several mechanisms including the deletion of autoreactive T-cells and induction of regulatory mechanisms. The aim of this project is to generate subsets of DC from rat bone marrow and spleen with abilities to regulate T cell responses in vitro. These functions are mediated through the differential ability of DC subsets to secret cytokines as well as the level of costimulatory molecule expression. The purified dendritic cells will be characterized based on phenotype by flow cytometry, cytokine production, and capacity to stimulate allogeneic T-cells in a primary MLR. The nature of T cell responses induced by DC subsets will be determined in DC-T cell co-culture experiments for the generation of regulatory T cell population(s).

Key Investigator: Maryam Hariri, Ph.D. and W. P. Andrew Lee, M.D.