Expansion of B Cells Is Necessary for the Induction of T-Cell Tolerance Elicited through the Anterior Chamber of the Eye

Abstract
Antigens injected into the anterior chamber (AC) of the eye induce a form of peripheral immune tolerance termed anterior chamber-associated immune deviation (ACAID). ACAID is initiated by F4/80+ ocular antigen-presenting cells (APC) which capture ocular antigens and migrate to the spleen where they transfer antigenic peptides to B cells, which act as ancillary APC for the induction of T-regulatory cells (T(reg)) that inhibit delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses. Here we show that ocular-like APC induce the expansion of tolerogenic splenic B cells. Furthermore, we show that inhibiting B-cell proliferation with either mitomycin-c or gamma-irradiation abolishes the ability of B cells to induce T(reg). To our knowledge, this is the first study to report that B-cell proliferation is needed for B-cell-induced T-cell tolerance.

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