Dendritic cells, engineered to overexpress 25-hydroxyvitamin D 1{alpha}-hydroxylase and pulsed with a myelin antigen, provide myelin-specific suppression of ongoing experimental allergic encephalomyelitis [Research]

In this study, we identified a potential novel myelin-specific therapy that works with immunogenic DCs, hence without the in vivo conversion concern. We showed that immunization with DCs, engineered to overexpress 25-hydroxyvitamin D 1α-hydroxylase for de novo synthesis of a focally high 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D concentration in the peripheral lymphoid tissues, induced Treg cells. In addition, such engineered DCs, when pulsed with a myelin antigen, led to myelin-specific suppression of ongoing experimental allergic encephalomyelitis (an MS animal model), and the disease suppression depended on forkhead-box-protein-P3(foxp3)+ Treg cells. Our data support a novel concept that immunogenic DCs can be engineered for myelin-specific therapy for MS.—Li, C.-H., Zhang, J., Baylink, D. J., Wang, X., Goparaju, N. B., Xu, Y., Wasnik, S., Cheng, Y., Berumen, E. C., Qin, X., Lau, K.-H. W., Tang, X. Dendritic cells, engineered to overexpress 25-hydroxyvitamin D 1α-hydroxylase and pulsed with a myelin antigen, provide myelin-specific suppression of ongoing experimental allergic encephalomyelitis.

Source: FASEB Journal - June 29, 2017 Category: Biology Authors: Li, C.-H., Zhang, J., Baylink, D. J., Wang, X., Goparaju, N. B., Xu, Y., Wasnik, S., Cheng, Y., Berumen, E. C., Qin, X., Lau, K.-H. W., Tang, X. Tags: Research Source Type: research