Regulation of T helper cell responses in experimental murine schistosomiasis by IL-10. Effect on expression of B7 and B7-2 costimulatory molecules by macrophages.

Abstract

Granulomatous inflammation in schistosomiasis is a manifestation of cell-mediated hypersensitivity to parasite egg Ags that is predictably reduced in size over the course of the disease. This down-regulation may reflect a state of anergy in the T cells mediating granuloma formation after interaction with accessory cells incapable of providing full stimulation. The present studies were conducted to investigate this mechanism at the molecular level. We found that granuloma macrophages (GM) strongly inhibit the ability of splenic APC to stimulate egg Ag-specific Th1 responses. This property was shown to be dependent on their secretion of IL-10. Moreover, activated GM in culture were found to express little or no costimulatory Ags B7 or B7-2. However, when their autocrine secretion of IL-10 was neutralized with specific mAb, GM displayed an up-regulation of costimulatory molecules as well as of MHC class II Ags. Most importantly, GM cultured in the presence of anti-IL-10 mAb, acquired the ability to stimulate egg Ag-specific T cells. By independently blocking each of the induced costimulatory Ags, it appeared that B7-2 molecules provided stronger costimulation than B7. In separate experiments, culture supernatants from GM exerted a powerful inhibition of costimulatory Ag expression on Con-A-stimulated peritoneal exudate cells in vivo, which could similarly be attributed to IL-10. Our results demonstrate that IL-10 can play a critical role in the generation of accessory cells that, by virtue of down-regulation of costimulatory molecules, may be capable of inducing anergy in T cells mediating the vigorous granulomatous response of acute stage schistosomiasis. Our studies lend support to the contention that a state of unresponsiveness in pathogenic T cells may precipitate the down-regulation of granuloma formation and provide a molecular basis for the underlying mechanisms.