In vitro expansion of CD4 +CD25 highFOXP3 +CD127 low/− regulatory T cells from peripheral blood lymphocytes of healthy Mycobacterium tuberculosis-infected humans

Abstract

CD4 +CD25 highFOXP3 + regulatory T (Treg) cells have recently been found at elevated levels in the peripheral blood of tuberculosis patients, compared to Mycobacterium tuberculosis latently infected (LTBI) healthy individuals and non-infected controls. Here, we show that CD4 +CD25 highFOXP3 + T lymphocytes can be expanded in vitro from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of LTBI individuals, but not of uninfected controls by incubating them with BCG in the presence of TGF-β. These expanded cells from the PBMC of LTBI subjects expressed CTLA-4, GITR and OX-40, but were CD127 low/− and have therefore the phenotype of Treg cells. In addition, they inhibited in a dose-dependant manner the proliferation of freshly isolated mononuclear cells in response to polyclonal stimulation, indicating that they are functional Treg lymphocytes. In contrast, incubation of the PBMC with BCG alone preferentially induced activated CD4 + T cells, expressing CD25 and/or CD69 and secreting IFN-γ. These results show that CD4 +CD25 highFOXP3 + Treg cells can be expanded or induced in the peripheral blood of LTBI individuals in conditions known to predispose to progression towards active tuberculosis and may therefore play an important role in the pathogenesis of the disease.