effect of beta interferon on dendritic cells and cytokine synthesis by CD4+ T cells

ABSTRACT

Dendritic cells [DC] are a key regulator of the immune response, and interferon-beta [IFN-beta] is considered an immunomodulatory molecule for DC. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the ability of IFN-beta treated DC to induce cytokine secretion by CD4+ T cells Dendritic cells were generated from blood monocytes with granulocyte-monocyte colony-stimulating factor and interleukin-4 with or without IFN-beta. We analyzed the production of CD4+ T helper cytokines [IL-17, IFN- y and IL-10] in the supernatant of the dendritic cell-T cell co- cultures by ELISA. We also studied the effects of HLA-G and costimulatory molecules on immature and mature DC. IFN-? and IL-17 decreased significantly in the presence of HLA-Gbearing DC compared to control cultures [p < 0.05]. Using the mixed leukocyte reaction, we found that DC treated with IFN- beta mediated the inhibition of T cell activation via cytokine production. We conclude that this is important for preventing overactivation of the immune system