Oral Presentation Australasian Society for Immunology Annual Scientific Meeting 2014

Antigen-presenting cell–targeted antigen expression: insights into requirements and mechanisms of steady-state and therapeutic T-cell tolerance. (#99)

Raymond Steptoe 1
  1. UQ Diamantina Institute, Woolloongabba, QLD

Established memory T cell responses represent a key hurdle to both protein and tissue replacement therapies as well as the application of tolerogenic immunotherapies in general.  Targeting expression of antigen to antigen-presenting cells is a powerful means to induce T-cell tolerance.  We have shown previously that genetic targeting of antigens to DC and other APC inactivates memory CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, but we now show this can be exploited for induction of therapeutic tolerance to ‘turn-off’ established but unwanted T-cell responses.  Here we combine the approaches of targeted antigen expression and HSCT under immune preserving conditions to show antigen-specific, therapeutic termination of memory CD4+ and CD8+ T-cell responses.  The requirements for effective therapeutic tolerance induction and the mechanisms involved will be outlined.