GENETICALLY-ENGINEERED IL-10-SECRETING KERATINOCYTES CONDITION LANGERHANS CELLS TOWARDS A TOLERAGENIC PHENOTYPE.

• TR Number: 398
• Authors: Prakasam, S., Jotwani, R., Taichman, L., Cutler, C.W. State University of New York - SUNY - Stony Brook, USA.
• Materials Tested: Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), Retroviral vectors containing IL-10 gene

This study by researchers at the State University of New York at Stony Brook demonstrated that Mattek’s Human Dendritic (Langerhans) Cells can be used to determine the influence of epithelial cells and cytokines on Langerhans cell activation and phenotype in response to microbial challenge. Epidermal Langerhans cells (Mattek Corp.), “sentinels” of the epithelium, undergo increased mobilization from oral mucosa in lichen planus, hairy-leukoplakia and periodontitis, presumably towards lymph nodes. The ability of Langerhans cells to induce immunoregulatory (toleragenic) / immunostimulatory effector responses may depend on the keratinocytes/ epithelial cell microenvironment in which they are “educated”. The objective of this study by researchers at the State University of New York at Stony Brook (USA) was to determine the influence of epithelial cells and cytokines on Langerhans cell activation / phenotype in response to microbial challenge. Researchers hypothesized that Langerhans cells conditioned with IL-10-secreting epithelial cells will optimally blunt Langerhans cell activation in response to E.coli LPS (EcLPS). Results suggested that the epithelial cells and IL-10 may play roles in conditioning Langerhans cells towards a tolerogenic phenotype by blunting of antigen presentation.