This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Bhardwaj, N Articles by Posnett, D N Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Bhardwaj, N Articles by Posnett, D N

research-article

Human T-cell responses to Mycoplasma arthritidis-derived superantigen.

Rockefeller University, New York, New York.

ABSTRACT

When injected into mice, Mycoplasma arthritidis causes a chronic arthritis that resembles rheumatoid arthritis, histologically. The organism produces a superantigen termed Mycoplasma arthritidis mitogen or MAM, that in humans preferentially expands T cells whose antigen receptors express V beta 17. T cells with this phenotype appear to be increased in rheumatoid synovial effusions. We describe a novel approach to isolating and characterizing human MAM-reactive T-cell lines and determining their T-cell receptor (TCR) V beta usage. Lines were prepared from T cells that clustered with dendritic cells during a 2-day exposure to MAM. Cluster and noncluster fractions of T cells were then expanded by using feeder cells and a polyclonal mitogen. Most of the MAM reactivity was found in dendritic T-cell clusters, as were most of the T cells expressing TCR V beta 17. After expansion, 76% of the cluster-derived T-cell lines were MAM reactive, while no reactivity was seen in cell lines derived from the noncluster fraction. Of the MAM-reactive lines, 49% expressed V beta 17 on some or all of the cells. Cell lines from both cluster and noncluster fractions were analyzed for TCR V beta mRNA expression by PCR amplification. Other V beta genes (5.1, 7, 8, 12, and 20) were found to be expressed by lines that were MAM reactive, although these were not a major component of the cluster-derived T cells. Some non-cluster-derived lines expressed V beta s 17, 12, and 7, but these proved to be nonreactive to MAM. Therefore, dendritic cells can be used to immunoselect and characterize T cells that express superantigen-reactive TCRs.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Razin, S., Yogev, D., Naot, Y. (1998). Molecular Biology and Pathogenicity of Mycoplasmas. Microbiol. Mol. Biol. Rev. 62: 1094-1156 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Hodtsev, A. S., Choi, Y., Spanopoulou, E., Posnett, D. N. (1998). Mycoplasma Superantigen Is a CDR3-dependent Ligand for the T Cell Antigen Receptor. J. Exp. Med. 187: 319-327 [Abstract] [Full Text]