Tumor Regulatory T Cells Potently Abrogate Antitumor Immunity

• Published in: The Journal of immunology (1950) 2009-05, Vol.182 (10), p.6160-6167
• Main Authors: Liu, Zuqiang, Kim, Jin H, Falo, Louis D., Jr, You, Zhaoyang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adoptive Transfer; Animals; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes - immunology; Female; Lymphocyte Activation; Mammary Neoplasms, Experimental - immunology; Mice; Mice, Inbred BALB C; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory - immunology
• ISSN: 0022-1767; 1550-6606
• DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.0802664

Regulatory T cell (Treg) from mice bearing a breast tumor were elevated (tumor Treg). In vitro, whereas tumor Treg ability to inhibit tumor-primed CD4(+) T cell activity is comparable to Treg from naive mice (naive Treg), only tumor Treg suppress naive CD8(+) T cell activation and DC function. Neither tumor Treg nor naive Treg can suppress antitumor immunity at the effector phase of the immune response induced by adoptively transferred tumor-primed CD4(+) T cells. This is consistent with the observation that, in this model, neither tumor Treg nor naive Treg can inhibit effectors in vitro or in vivo. However, tumor Treg abrogate tumor-specific CD8(+) T cell responses in tumor-draining lymph nodes and antitumor immunity at the early stage of the immune response induced by adoptively transferred tumor-primed CD4(+) T cells. These data indicate that, in this model, tumor Treg potently abrogate tumor-specific CD8(+) T cell responses in tumor-draining lymph nodes, thereby suppressing antitumor immunity at the early stage of the immune response induced by adoptively transferred tumor-primed CD4(+) T cells.