A novel modulation of structural and functional changes of mouse bone marrow derived dendritic cells (BMDCs) by interleukin-2(IL-2)

Abstract

IL-2 is a pleiotropic cytokine produced by T cell after antigen activation of T cell and it is so called T cell growth factor. A large number of documents suggest that Il-2 plays pivotal roles in the immune response and now Il-2 is an approved drug being used for various kinds of diseases such as cancer and dermatitis. 1 The aim of present exploration was to look at effect of IL-2 on structural, phenotypic and functional maturation of murine BMDCs. The structural and phenotypic maturation of BMDCs under influence of IL-2 were evaluated by light microscope and flow cytometry (FCM). The functional maturation of BMDCs was confirmed by cytochemistry assay, FITC-dextran, acid phosphatase (ACP) activity, bio-assay and enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).We elucidated that IL-2 up-regulated the expression of key surface markers such as: CD80, CD83, CD86, CD40 and MHC II molecules on BMDCs, down-regulated phagocytosis activity, induced more production of IL-2 and TNF-α secreted by BMDCs. Therefore it can be concluded that IL-2 effectively enhance the maturation of BMDCs. Our results provide direct evidence to support IL-2 would be used as a potent adjuvant in preparation of DC-based vaccines, as well as an immune remedy for cancer situation.