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Infection and Immunity, September 2002, p. 4791-4797, Vol. 70, No. 9
0019-9567/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/IAI.70.9.4791-4797.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Immune Cell-Mediated Protection against Vaginal Candidiasis: Evidence for a Major Role of Vaginal CD4⁺ T Cells and Possible Participation of Other Local Lymphocyte Effectors

Giorgio Santoni,¹ Maria Boccanera,² Daniela Adriani,² Roberta Lucciarini,¹ Consuelo Amantini,¹ Stefania Morrone,³ Antonio Cassone,² and Flavia De Bernardis^2*

Department of Pharmacological Sciences and Experimental Medicine, University of Camerino, Camerino,¹ Department of Bacteriology and Medical Mycology, Istituto Superiore di Sanità,² Department of Experimental Medicine and Pathology, University of Rome La Sapienza, Rome, Italy³

Received 6 March 2002/ Returned for modification 9 May 2002/ Accepted 29 May 2002

The protective roles of different lymphocyte subsets were investigated in a rat vaginal candidiasis model by adoptive transfer of vaginal lymphocytes (VL) or sorted, purified CD3⁺ T cells, CD4⁺ or CD8⁺ T cells, or CD3^- CD5⁺ B cells from the vaginas of naïve or immune rats following three rounds of Candida albicans infection. The adoptive transfer of total VL from nonimmune animals did not alter the course of vaginal candidiasis of the recipient rats. In contrast, the animals receiving total VL or CD3⁺ T cells from immune rats showed a highly significant acceleration of fungus clearance compared with animals which received nonimmune VL. The animals with vaginal CD3^- CD5⁺ B cells transferred from immune rats also had fewer Candida CFU than the controls, but fungal clearance was significantly retarded with respect to the animals administered immune T cells. Sorted, purified CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ vaginal T cells from immune rats were also adoptively transferred to naïve animals. Although both populations were seen to accelerate the clearance of the fungus from the vagina, CD4⁺ T cells were much more effective than CD8⁺ T cells. Overall, there was no difference between the antifungal effects of immune vaginal CD4⁺ T cells and those achievable with the transfer of whole, immune VL. Histological observations of the vaginal tissues of rats with adoptively transferred immune T cells demonstrated a remarkable accumulation of lymphocytes in the subepithelial lamina propria and also infiltrating the mucosal epithelium. These results strongly suggest that distinct vaginal lymphocyte subsets participate in the adaptive anti-Candida immunity at the vaginal level, with the vaginal CD4⁺ T cells probably playing a major role.

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* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Istituto Superiore di Sanità Viale Regina Elena, 299 00161 Rome, Italy. Phone: 3906 49902654. Fax: 3906 49387112. E-mail: fdberna{at}iss.it.

Editor: T. R. Kozel

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Infection and Immunity, September 2002, p. 4791-4797, Vol. 70, No. 9
0019-9567/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/IAI.70.9.4791-4797.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

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