Th17 cells carrying TCR recognizing epidermal autoantigen induce psoriasis-like skin inflammation

J Immunol. 2013 Sep 15;191(6):3065-72. doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.1300348. Epub 2013 Aug 16.

Abstract

Psoriasis is considered a Th17-type autoimmune skin inflammatory disease; however, involvement of an autoantigen-specific TCR has not been established. In this study, we show that psoriasis-like skin inflammation can be induced by autoreactive Th17 cells. We previously developed the desmoglein 3-specific TCR-transgenic (Dsg3H1) mouse, in which CD4⁺ T cells recognize physiological epidermal autoantigen. T cells from Dsg3H1 mice were polarized into Th17 cells in vitro and then adoptively transferred into Rag2⁻/⁻ mice. Dsg3H1-Th17 cells induced severe psoriasis-like skin inflammation within 2 wk after transfer in the tissues in which desmoglein 3 is expressed. Such pathology was not observed when wild-type Th17 cells or Th1-skewed Dsg3H1 T cells were transferred, and it was strongly suppressed by anti-IL-12/23 and anti-IL-17 Abs. Although IFN-γ⁺/IL-17⁺ T cells accumulated in the skin lesions of mice that received Dsg3H1-Th17 cells, IFN-γ-deficient Dsg3H1-Th17 cells were fully pathogenic. These results demonstrate that cutaneous psoriasis-like immunopathology can be developed by epidermis-specific recognition of Th17 cells, which is strictly dependent on IL-17 but not IFN-γ.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adoptive Transfer
  • Animals
  • Autoantigens / immunology*
  • Cell Separation
  • Dermatitis / immunology
  • Disease Models, Animal
  • Flow Cytometry
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Mice, Transgenic
  • Psoriasis / immunology*
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / immunology*
  • Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Skin / immunology*
  • Th17 Cells / immunology*

Substances

  • Autoantigens
  • Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell