First Author | Kalekar LA | Year | 2016 |
Journal | Nat Immunol | Volume | 17 |
Issue | 3 | Pages | 304-14 |
PubMed ID | 26829766 | Mgi Jnum | J:258703 |
Mgi Id | MGI:6140595 | Doi | 10.1038/ni.3331 |
Citation | Kalekar LA, et al. (2016) CD4(+) T cell anergy prevents autoimmunity and generates regulatory T cell precursors. Nat Immunol 17(3):304-14 |
abstractText | The role of anergy, an acquired state of T cell functional unresponsiveness, in natural peripheral tolerance remains unclear. In this study, we found that anergy was selectively induced in fetal antigen-specific maternal CD4(+) T cells during pregnancy. A naturally occurring subpopulation of anergic polyclonal CD4(+) T cells, enriched for self antigen-specific T cell antigen receptors, was also present in healthy hosts. Neuropilin-1 expression in anergic conventional CD4(+) T cells was associated with hypomethylation of genes related to thymic regulatory T cells (Treg cells), and this correlated with their ability to differentiate into Foxp3(+) Treg cells that suppressed immunopathology. Thus, our data suggest that not only is anergy induction important in preventing autoimmunity but also it generates the precursors for peripheral Treg cell differentiation. |