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The role of PD‐1 during maternal T cell responses to fetal antigen during pregnancy
Author(s) -
Taglauer Elizabeth Susan,
Yankee Thomas M,
Petroff Margaret G
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.22.1_supplement.853.18
Subject(s) - fetus , adoptive cell transfer , andrology , immunology , t cell , antigen , spleen , biology , immune system , pregnancy , medicine , genetics
The failure to reject the semiallogenic fetus suggests that maternal T lymphocytes are regulated by potent mechanisms in pregnancy. PD‐1, a CD28 family receptor, is expressed on activated T cells and may be involved in establishing peripheral tolerance. Here we tested the role of PD‐1 in maternal tolerance to the fetus. No significant differences in fetal viability were observed between syngenic (n=8) and allogenic pregnancies (n=10) in PD‐1 −/− mothers. We further characterized the function of PD‐1 on maternal T cells using adoptive transfer of naïve OT‐I cells into female mice carrying ovalbumin (ova)‐expressing or wild type (WT) fetuses. CFSE‐labeled spleen cells from OT‐I mice were transferred at mid‐gestation into females bred to ova‐transgenic or WT males. Three days post‐transfer, cells from uterus‐draining lymph nodes were stained for OT‐I markers and PD‐1 and analyzed by flow cytometry. Transferred OT‐I cells proliferated and upregulated PD‐1 in females carrying ova‐expressing fetuses. We next transferred either OT‐I/PD‐1 +/− or OT‐I/PD‐1 −/− cells, and in the absence of PD‐1 there was a significant increase in the percentage of OT‐I cells detected in lymph nodes ( p = 0.003, n = 3). These results suggest that PD‐1 aids in controlling maternal T cell responses to fetal antigen, and that pregnancy involves mechanisms in addition to PD‐1 to maintain maternal tolerance to the semiallogenic fetus. Support: NIH HD045611.