C1q-Dependent Dendritic Cell Cross-Presentation of In Vivo-Formed Antigen-Antibody Complexes

Abstract

Dendritic cells (DCs) are specialized in Ag engulfment via a wide variety of uptake receptors on their cell surface. In the present study we investigated Ag uptake and presentation of in vivo-formed Ag-Ab complexes by i.v. injecting mice with Ag-specific Abs followed by the cognate Ag. We show by this natural Ab-mediated Ag targeting system that uptake by splenic APC subsets is severely hampered in mice lacking complement factor C1q (C1qa^-/-). Moreover, no detectable Ag cross-presentation by CD8α⁺ DCs from C1qa^-/- mice was found. On the contrary, Ag uptake was not hampered by APCs in FcγRI/II/III/IV-deficient (FcγR quadruple^-/-) mice, and the cross-presentation ability of CD8α⁺ DCs was not affected. In conclusion, we show that C1q rather than FcγRs controls the Ab-mediated Ag uptake and its presentation by spleen APC subsets to T cells.