Effector mechanisms of cell-mediated immunity Flashcards
What are the subsets of CD4+ T cells?
- TH1
- TH2
- TH17
How are naive CD4+ T cells activated to differentiate into their effector subsets?
- Stimulation by an antigen presenting cell
- Costimulation
- Cytokines
What is the main costimulatory receptor of T cells?
CD28, which binds to B7 on APCs
What are inhibitory receptors of T cells?
- CTLA-4
- PD-1
How do CTLA-4 and PD-1 function?
- They bind B7, producing effects opposite to those of the stimulatory receptor (CD28)
- By binding B7, they also decrease the amount of ligand available for stimulation of CD28
What is the cytokine that stimulates proliferation of activated T cells?
IL-2
What is the function of IL-2?
Increased proliferation of activated T cells
How do activated T cells evade cell death?
Increased production of the antiapoptotic proteins Bcl-XL and Bcl-2
What is the function of Bcl-XL and Bcl-2?
Increased survival of activated T cells by evasion of apoptosis
How do T cells migrate from secondary lymphoid organs to the affected regions?
Similarly to neutrophils in acute inflammation (selectins, integrins, CD31, following a chemokine gradient)
What types of T cells migrate to sites of infection?
Effector and memory CD4+ T cells (but not naive T cells)
What happens if effector T cells migrate to a site of infection where there are antigens that they are not specific for?
They either die by apoptosis or return via lymphatics to secondary lymphoid organs
Some activated CD4+ T cells do not leave the secondary lymphoid organs. What happens to them instead?
They become follicular helper T cells which activate B cells to produce high-affinity antibodies of different isotypes
How are macrophages activated by TH1 cells?
- CD40:CD40L interactions, with CD40L contributed by the T cell
- IFN-γ binds to its receptor on macrophages
What type of macrophage activation is stimulated by TH1 cells?
Classical (M1) activation