Airway basal stem cells are necessary for the maintenance of functional intraepithelial airway macrophages.

Adult stem cells play a crucial role in tissue homeostasis and repair through multiple mechanisms. In addition to being able to replace aged or damaged cells, stem cells provide signals that contribute to the maintenance and function of neighboring cells. In the lung, airway basal stem cells also produce cytokines and chemokines in response to inhaled irritants, allergens, and pathogens, which affect specific immune cell populations and shape the nature of the immune response. However, direct cell-to-cell signaling through contact between airway basal stem cells and immune cells has not been demonstrated. Recently, a unique population of intraepithelial airway macrophages (IAMs) has been identified in the murine trachea. Here, we demonstrate that IAMs require Notch signaling from airway basal stem cells for maintenance of their differentiated state and function. Furthermore, we demonstrate that Notch signaling between airway basal stem cells and IAMs is required for antigen-induced allergic inflammation only in the trachea where the basal stem cells are located whereas allergic responses in distal lung tissues are preserved consistent with a local circuit linking stem cells to proximate immune cells. Finally, we demonstrate that IAM-like cells are present in human conducting airways and that these cells display Notch activation, mirroring their murine counterparts. Since diverse lung stem cells have recently been identified and localized to specific anatomic niches along the proximodistal axis of the respiratory tree, we hypothesize that the direct functional coupling of local stem cell-mediated regeneration and immune responses permits a compartmentalized inflammatory response.

Microneedle patch as a new platform to effectively deliver inactivated polio vaccine and inactivated rotavirus vaccine.

We recently reported a lack of interference between inactivated rotavirus vaccine (IRV) and inactivated poliovirus vaccine (IPV) and their potential dose sparing when the two vaccines were administered intramuscularly either in combination or standalone in rats and guinea pigs. In the present study, we optimized the formulations of both vaccines and investigated the feasibility of manufacturing a combined IRV-IPV dissolving microneedle patch (dMNP), assessing its compatibility and immunogenicity in rats. Our results showed that IRV delivered by dMNP alone or in combination with IPV induced similar levels of RV-specific IgG and neutralizing antibody. Likewise, IPV delivered by dMNP alone or in combination with IRV induced comparable levels of neutralizing antibody of poliovirus types 1, 2, and 3. We further demonstrated high stability of IRV-dMNP at 5, 25, and 40 °C and IPV-dMNP at 5 and 25 °C, and found that three doses of IRV or IPV when co-administered at a quarter dose was as potent as a full target dose in inducing neutralizing antibodies against corresponding rotavirus or poliovirus. We conclude that IRV-IPV dMNP did not interfere with each other in triggering an immunologic response and were highly immunogenic in rats. Our findings support the further development of this innovative approach to deliver a novel combination vaccine against rotavirus and poliovirus in children throughout the world.

The kinase DYRK1A reciprocally regulates the differentiation of Th17 and regulatory T cells.

The balance between Th17 and T regulatory (Treg) cells critically modulates immune homeostasis, with an inadequate Treg response contributing to inflammatory disease. Using an unbiased chemical biology approach, we identified a novel role for the dual specificity tyrosine-phosphorylation-regulated kinase DYRK1A in regulating this balance. Inhibition of DYRK1A enhances Treg differentiation and impairs Th17 differentiation without affecting known pathways of Treg/Th17 differentiation. Thus, DYRK1A represents a novel mechanistic node at the branch point between commitment to either Treg or Th17 lineages. Importantly, both Treg cells generated using the DYRK1A inhibitor harmine and direct administration of harmine itself potently attenuate inflammation in multiple experimental models of systemic autoimmunity and mucosal inflammation. Our results identify DYRK1A as a physiologically relevant regulator of Treg cell differentiation and suggest a broader role for other DYRK family members in immune homeostasis. These results are discussed in the context of human diseases associated with dysregulated DYRK activity.

Functional and structural characterization of Francisella tularensis O-antigen antibodies at the low end of antigen reactivity.

The O-antigen (OAg) of the Gram-negative bacterium Francisella tularensis (Ft), which is both a capsular polysaccharide and a component of lipopolysaccharide, is comprised of tetrasaccharide repeats and induces antibodies mainly against repeating internal epitopes. We previously reported on several BALB/c mouse monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) that bind to internal Ft OAg epitopes and are protective in mouse models of respiratory tularemia. We now characterize three new internal Ft OAg IgG2a MAbs, N203, N77, and N24, with 10- to 100-fold lower binding potency than previously characterized internal-OAg IgG2a MAbs, despite sharing one or more variable region germline genes with some of them. In a mouse model of respiratory tularemia with the highly virulent Ft type A strain SchuS4, the three new MAbs reduced blood bacterial burden with potencies that mirror their antigen-binding strength; the best binder of the new MAbs, N203, prolonged survival in a dose-dependent manner, but was at least 10-fold less potent than the best previously characterized IgG2a MAb, Ab52. X-ray crystallographic studies of N203 Fab showed a flexible binding site in the form of a partitioned groove, which cannot provide as many contacts to OAg as does the Ab52 binding site. These results reveal structural features of antibodies at the low end of reactivity with multi-repeat microbial carbohydrates and demonstrate that such antibodies still have substantial protective effects against infection.

B-cell epitopes in GroEL of Francisella tularensis.

The chaperonin protein GroEL, also known as heat shock protein 60 (Hsp60), is a prominent antigen in the human and mouse antibody response to the facultative intracellular bacterium Francisella tularensis (Ft), the causative agent of tularemia. In addition to its presumed cytoplasmic location, FtGroEL has been reported to be a potential component of the bacterial surface and to be released from the bacteria. In the current study, 13 IgG2a and one IgG3 mouse monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) specific for FtGroEL were classified into eleven unique groups based on shared VH-VL germline genes, and seven crossblocking profiles revealing at least three non-overlapping epitope areas in competition ELISA. In a mouse model of respiratory tularemia with the highly pathogenic Ft type A strain SchuS4, the Ab64 and N200 IgG2a mAbs, which block each other's binding to and are sensitive to the same two point mutations in FtGroEL, reduced bacterial burden indicating that they target protective GroEL B-cell epitopes. The Ab64 and N200 epitopes, as well as those of three other mAbs with different crossblocking profiles, Ab53, N3, and N30, were mapped by hydrogen/deuterium exchange-mass spectrometry (DXMS) and visualized on a homology model of FtGroEL. This model was further supported by its experimentally-validated computational docking to the X-ray crystal structures of Ab64 and Ab53 Fabs. The structural analysis and DXMS profiles of the Ab64 and N200 mAbs suggest that their protective effects may be due to induction or stabilization of a conformational change in FtGroEL.

The role of CARMA1 in T cells.

Caspase recruitment domain-containing membrane-associated guanylate kinase protein-1 (CARMA1), a member of the membrane associated guanylate kinase (MAGUK) family of kinases, is essential for T lymphocyte activation and proliferation via T-cell receptor (TCR) mediated NF-κB activation. Recent studies suggest a broader role for CARMA1 regulating other T-cell functions as well as a role in non-TCR-mediated signaling pathways important for lymphocyte development and functions. In addition, CARMA1 has been shown to be an important component in the pathogenesis of several human diseases. Thus, comprehensively defining its mechanisms of action and regulation could reveal novel therapeutic targets for T-cell-mediated diseases and lymphoproliferative disorders.

Enhanced Tim3 activity improves survival after influenza infection.

Influenza is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States. Studies have shown that excessive T cell activity can mediate pneumonitis in the setting of influenza infection, and data from the 2009 H1N1 pandemic indicate that critical illness and respiratory failure postinfection were associated with greater infiltration of the lungs with CD8+ T cells. T cell Ig and mucin domain 3 (Tim3) is a negative regulator of Th1/Tc1-type immune responses. Activation of Tim3 on effector T cells has been shown to downregulate proliferation, cell-mediated cytotoxicity, and IFN-γ production, as well as induce apoptosis. In this article, we demonstrate that deletion of the terminal cytoplasmic domain of the Tim3 gene potentiates its ability to downregulate Tc1 inflammation, and that this enhanced Tim3 activity is associated with decreased phosphorylation of the TCR-CD3ζ-chain. We then show that mice with this Tim3 mutation infected with influenza are protected from morbidity and mortality without impairment in viral clearance or functional heterotypic immunity. This protection is associated with decreased CD8+ T cell proliferation and decreased production of inflammatory cytokines, including IFN-γ. Furthermore, the Tim3 mutation was protective against mortality in a CD8+ T cell-specific model of pneumonitis. These data suggest that Tim3 could be targeted to prevent immunopathology during influenza infection and demonstrate a potentially novel signaling mechanism used by Tim3 to downregulate the Tc1 response.

Protective B-cell epitopes of Francisella tularensis O-polysaccharide in a mouse model of respiratory tularaemia.

Antibodies to the lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of Francisella tularensis have been shown to be protective against respiratory tularaemia in mouse models, and we have previously described mouse monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) to non-overlapping terminal and internal epitopes of the F. tularensis LPS O-polysaccharide (OAg). In the current study, we used F. tularensis LPS oligosaccharides of defined OAg repeat length as molecular rulers in competition ELISA to demonstrate that the epitope targeted by the terminal OAg-binding mAb FB11 is contained within one tetrasaccharide repeat whereas the epitope targeted by the internal OAg-binding mAb Ab52 spans two tetrasaccharide repeats. Both mAbs conferred survival to BALB/c mice infected intranasally with the F. tularensis type B live vaccine strain and prolonged survival of BALB/c mice infected intranasally with the highly virulent F. tularensis type A strain SchuS4. The protective effects correlated with reduced bacterial burden in mAb-treated infected mice. These results indicate that an oligosaccharide with two OAg tetrasaccharide repeats covers both terminal and internal protective OAg epitopes, which may inform the design of vaccines for tularaemia. Furthermore, the FB11 and Ab52 mAbs could serve as reporters to monitor the response of vaccine recipients to protective B-cell epitopes of F. tularensis OAg.

CARMA1 is necessary for optimal T cell responses in a murine model of allergic asthma.

CARMA1 is a lymphocyte-specific scaffold protein necessary for T cell activation. Deletion of CARMA1 prevents the development of allergic airway inflammation in a mouse model of asthma due to a defect in naive T cell activation. However, it is unknown if CARMA1 is important for effector and memory T cell responses after the initial establishment of inflammation, findings that would be more relevant to asthma therapies targeted to CARMA1. In the current study, we sought to elucidate the role of CARMA1 in T cells that have been previously activated. Using mice in which floxed CARMA1 exons can be selectively deleted in T cells by OX40-driven Cre recombinase (OX40(+/Cre)CARMA1(F/F)), we report that CD4(+) T cells from these mice have impaired T cell reactivation responses and NF-κB signaling in vitro. Furthermore, in an in vivo recall model of allergic airway inflammation that is dependent on memory T cell function, OX40(+/Cre)CARMA1(F/F) mice have attenuated eosinophilic airway inflammation, T cell activation, and Th2 cytokine production. Using MHC class II tetramers, we demonstrate that the development and maintenance of Ag-specific memory T cells is not affected in OX40(+/Cre)CARMA1(F/F) mice. In addition, adoptive transfer of Th2-polarized OX40(+/Cre)CARMA1(F/F) Ag-specific CD4(+) T cells into wild-type mice induces markedly less airway inflammation in response to Ag challenge than transfer of wild-type Th2 cells. These data demonstrate a novel role for CARMA1 in effector and memory T cell responses and suggest that therapeutic strategies targeting CARMA1 could help treat chronic inflammatory disorders such as asthma.

Characterization of monoclonal antibodies to terminal and internal O-antigen epitopes of Francisella tularensis lipopolysaccharide.

The lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of Francisella tularensis (Ft), the Gram negative bacterium that causes tularemia, has been shown to be a main protective antigen in mice and humans; we have previously demonstrated that murine anti-Ft LPS IgG2a monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) can protect mice against otherwise lethal intranasal infection with the Ft live vaccine strain (LVS). Here we show that four IgG2a anti-LPS MAbs are specific for the O-polysaccharide (O-antigen [OAg]) of Ft LPS. But whereas three of the MAbs bind to immunodominant repeating internal epitopes, one binds to a unique terminal epitope of Ft OAg. This was deduced from its even binding to both long and short chains of the LPS ladder in Western blots, its rapid decrease in ELISA binding to decreasing solid-phase LPS concentrations, its inability to compete for LPS binding with a representative of the other three MAbs, and its inability to immunoprecipitate OAg despite its superior agglutination titer. Biacore analysis showed the end-binding MAb to have higher bivalent avidity for Ft OAg than the internal-binding MAbs and provided an immunogenicity explanation for the predominance of internal-binding anti-Ft OAg MAbs. These findings demonstrate that non-overlapping epitopes can be targeted by antibodies to Ft OAg, which may inform the design of vaccines and immunotherapies against tularemia.

Antibody treatment of human tumor xenografts elicits active anti-tumor immunity in nude mice.

Athymic nude mice bearing subcutaneous tumor xenografts of the human anti-colorectal cancer cell line SW480 were used as a preclinical model to explore anti-tumor immunotherapies. Intratumor or systemic treatment of the mice with murine anti-SW480 serum, recombinant anti-SW480 polyclonal antibodies, or the anti-colorectal cancer monoclonal antibody CO17-1A, caused retardation or regression of SW480 tumor xenografts. Interestingly, when mice that had regressed their tumors were re-challenged with SW480 cells, these mice regressed the new tumors without further antibody treatment. Adoptive transfer of spleen cells from mice that had regressed their tumors conferred anti-tumor immunity to naïve nude mice. Pilot experiments suggest that the transferred anti-tumor immunity is mediated by T cells of both gammadelta and alphabeta lineages. These results demonstrate that passive anti-tumor immunotherapy can elicit active immunity and support a role for extra-thymic gammadelta and alphabeta T cells in tumor rejection. Implications for potential immunotherapies include injection of tumor nodules in cancer patients with anti-tumor antibodies to induce anti-tumor T cell immunity.

Generation and characterization of hybridoma antibodies for immunotherapy of tularemia.

Tularemia is caused by the Gram-negative facultative intracellular bacterium Francisella tularensis, which has been classified as a category A select agent-a likely bioweapon. The high virulence of F. tularensis and the threat of engineered antibiotic resistant variants warrant the development of new therapies to combat this disease. We have characterized 14 anti-Francisella hybridoma antibodies derived from mice infected with F. tularensis live vaccine strain (LVS) for potential use as immunotherapy of tularemia. All 14 antibodies cross-reacted with virulent F. tularensis type A clinical isolates, 8 bound to a purified preparation of LVS LPS, and 6 bound to five protein antigens, identified by proteome microarray analysis. An IgG2a antibody, reactive with the LPS preparation, conferred full protection when administered either systemically or intranasally to BALB/c mice post challenge with a lethal dose of intranasal LVS; three other antibodies prolonged survival. These anti-Francisella hybridoma antibodies could be converted to chimeric versions with mouse V regions and human C regions to serve as components of a recombinant polyclonal antibody for clinical testing as immunotherapy of tularemia. The current study is the first to employ proteome microarrays to identify the target antigens of anti-Francisella monoclonal antibodies and the first to demonstrate the systemic and intranasal efficacy of monoclonal antibodies for post-exposure treatment of respiratory tularemia.