Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, Vol 38, 301-310, Copyright © 1997 by Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology

ARTICLES AND REPORTS

Adoptive transfer of murine cytomegalovirus-immune lymph node cells prevents retinitis in T-cell-depleted mice

Y Lu, JE Bigger, CA Thomas and SS Atherton
Department of Cellular and Structural Biology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio 78284, USA.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine whether adoptive transfer of murine cytomegalovirus (MCMV)-immune lymph node cells prevents retinitis in immunosuppressed mice. METHODS: Adult BALB/c mice were thymectomized and T-cell depleted using rat monoclonal antibodies specific for mouse CD4+ and CD8+ T-cells. The level of rat immunoglobulin G in the treated mice was monitored by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Immune cells were labeled with PKH26-GH immediately before adoptive transfer, and flow cytometry was used to determine the percentage of adoptively transferred T-cells (PKH+, fluorescein isothiocyanate [FITC+]) in the spleens of the recipient mice 3 days after transfer. The ability of adoptively transferred cells to protect from retinitis was studied in T-cell-depleted mice injected with MCMV through the supraciliary route. Mice received 4 x 10(7) in vitro-restimulated MCMV-immune cells, 4 x 10(7) freshly isolated MCMV- immune cells, 4 x 10(7) freshly isolated ovalbumin-immune cells, or no cells (control group). RESULTS: The best time to balance depletion of endogenous T-cells with persistence of transferred cells was 3 weeks after T-cell depletion. Both restimulated and freshly isolated MCMV- immune cells conferred protection from retinitis. Freshly isolated ovalbumin-immune lymph node cells did not prevent retinitis, indicating that protection was virus-specific and merely was not because of transfer of antigen-activated lymph node cells. CONCLUSIONS: Adoptive immunotherapy has been used to prevent cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in patients who have undergone transplantation, and, by extrapolation, the results of these studies suggest that adoptive immunotherapy with human CMV-specific immune cells might be used to prevent or ameliorate CMV retinitis in immunocompromised patients.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				J. E. Bigger, M. Tanigawa, M. Zhang, and S. S. Atherton Murine Cytomegalovirus Infection Causes Apoptosis of Uninfected Retinal Cells Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci., July 1, 2000; 41(8): 2248 - 2254. [Abstract] [Full Text]

				J. E. Bigger, M. Tanigawa, C. A. Thomas III, and S. S. Atherton Protection against Murine Cytomegalovirus Retinitis by Adoptive Transfer of Virus-Specific CD8+ T Cells Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci., October 1, 1999; 40(11): 2608 - 2613. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				J. E. Bigger, C. A. Thomas III, and S. S. Atherton NK Cell Modulation of Murine Cytomegalovirus Retinitis J. Immunol., June 15, 1998; 160(12): 5826 - 5831. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]