FP6Reintegration grant2008–2010

SKIN IMMUNITY · Role of skin dendritic cells in stimulating immune responses initiated in skin

FP6 — Marie Curie Actions (Human Resources and Mobility)

Duration
2008-07-01 → 2010-06-30
EU contribution
€80,000
Participants
1
Scheme
IRG

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Results in brief

Final Activity and Management Report Summary - SKIN IMMUNITY (Role of skin dendritic cells in stimulating immune responses initiated in skin)

The most important scientific achievements made showed the role for E-selectin ligand in the migration of skin-antigen-specific CD4 and CD8 T cells into the skin. Humans who suffer from allergic skin diseases have a disease that is mediated by T cells, which through their effector function cause the disease. We have been able to show that the migration of activated antigen-specific T cells is regulated by expression of a skin homing marker, E-selectin ligand. Only when extra scratching was applied, T cells migrated into skin. In absence of this scratching, pathology did not ensue.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

Dendritic cells in peripheral immune organs are quiescent sentinels that continuously survey their surroundings by fluid phase uptake and endocytosis. Dendritic cells become activated when pathogen-derived fragments are detected. Engulfed material is now processed into peptides and lipids for incorporation into peptide/MHC or lipid/CD1 complexes, for display to MHC- and CD1-restricted T cells respectively. The presentation of antigen to T cells is regarded the initiation of immune responses. Much of what we know about the intracellular antigen processing and loading has been obtained from biochemical and cell biological analysis of B cell lines, and to a more limited extent, of cultured dendritic cells.New methodology now makes it possible to visualize the uptake of fluorescent antigen by live Class II MHC-positive dendritic cells in situ without the need for fixation or staining, by analysis of dendritic cells in the epidermis of mice that carry fusion proteins composed of Class II MHC molecules and green fluorescent protein. We will study the protein and lipid antigen-presentation pathways in skin-derived dendritic cells. We propose to study the importance of antigen entry into specialized endosomal compartments in prototypic immature dendritic cells in situ, by analysis of Langerhans cells in epidermis.The loading of lipid antigens in late endosomal compartments in primary cells has not been explored to date, due to the unavailability of suitable mouse models. We have very recently succeeded in the generation of novel fluorescent knock-in mice in which we shall study the intracellular trafficking routes of membrane protein CD1d.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

Links

Data: CORDIS, © European Union