Nature of the antigenic complex recognized by T lymphocytes. IX. Direct immunochemical demonstration of nominal antigen on the macrophage cell surface

Gangliosides block antigen presentation by human monocytes

Gangliosides, immunosuppressive molecules shed by tumor cells, are potent inhibitors of monocyte accessory cell function. However, the specific monocyte cellular defect caused by gangliosides is unknown. Here we sought to delineate whether this abnormality is in the induction of suppressor cells, in intracellular antigen processing, or in intercellular antigen presentation. Three sets of studies of the tetanus toxoid (TT)-induced lymphoproliferative response, which is dependent upon monocyte accessory function, address this issue: (1) Antigen (TT)-primed human monocytes incubated with 50-100 microM human brain gangliosides for 24-48 h, washed, and then combined with T-cells, were inhibited in triggering T-cell proliferation, showing that the effect was occurring after antigen processing was complete. (2) T-cell responses to immobilized anti-CD3 or to antigen-primed control monocytes in the presence of ganglioside-exposed monocytes were unaffected, showing that ganglioside-exposed monocytes did not act as suppressor cells. (3) Stimulation by TT peptide fragment 830-843, which does not require processing, was completely inhibited by exposure of monocytes to gangliosides. These findings identify ganglioside interference with monocyte accessory cell function at the level of antigen presentation. We conclude that tumor gangliosides may inhibit host anti-tumor cellular immune responses by preventing the effective cellular interactions of the antigen-primed monocyte with the responding T-lymphocyte.

Immunologically relevant peptide antigen exists on the presenting cell in a manner accessible to macromolecules in solution

Although studies of the association of antigen with APC have been complicated by antigen-processing requirements, recent studies have suggested that immunologically relevant antigen should be present on the APC surface. Nevertheless, blocking of antigen presentation with antibody to the antigen has not been demonstrable in most systems. To study this problem we developed a system using avidin to block presentation of amino-terminal biotinylated synthetic peptide 132-146 of sperm whale myoglobin (B132) to a murine T cell clone specific for this site in association with I-Ed. greater than 95% specific inhibition was observed with doses of B132 equipotent to unmodified peptide. Specific blocking could be observed: (a) after pulsing APC with antigen, washing, and incubating for a chase period of 8-16 h before addition of avidin and T cells to assure adequate time for intracellular trafficking and maximal display of antigen on the cell surface, or (b) when monensin is present during the antigen pulse to inhibit such traffic. Therefore, the inhibition appeared to be occurring at the cell surface unless dissociation and reassociation were constantly occurring. To distinguish these, B10.GD APC (I-Ed-negative) were pulsed with antigen and cocultured with B10.D2 APC (I-Ed-positive). No detectable antigen presentation resulted. Thus, minimal dissociation and reassociation between antigen and APC occurs and, consequently, blocking by extracellular solution-phase binding of avidin to antigen is unlikely. Taken together, these data suggest that the blocking is occurring at the cell surface. Thus, under physiologic conditions, immunologically relevant antigen necessary for T cell activation appears to be present on the APC surface and is freely accessible to macromolecules the size of avidin. These findings hold specific implications for models of antigen presentation for T cell recognition.

The ability of Ia and H-2Kk-bearing membranes to replace the antigen-presenting cell in an H-2Kk allogeneic cytotoxic T cell response

Induction of an allogeneic cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) response is dependent, in part, on uptake and processing of the class I alloantigen by antigen-presenting cells and subsequent Ia-restricted recognition of the alloantigen by helper T cells, resulting in lymphokine production. The nature of the antigen-processing event has been investigated using reconstituted membranes to replace the antigen-presenting cells in the generation of a secondary allogeneic CTL response. Membranes were isolated from an Iad-positive antigen presenting B cell lymphoma (D2N), detergent solubilized and then reconstituted together with affinity-purified H-2Kk antigen in the presence of protease inhibitors. These reconstituted vesicles, containing both syngeneic Ia and alloantigen, were able to induce the helper T cell arm of the CTL response in cultures depleted of antigen-presenting cells. A variety of control experiments provided strong evidence that the helper T cells recognized the H-2Kk, probably in its native form, in an Ia-restricted manner on the vesicles, while the pre-CTL can directly recognize H-2Kk. Recognition was only effective if both the Ia and alloantigen were inserted into the same membrane bilayer. The results strongly suggest that the obligatory antigen processing event required for helper T cell recognition of alloantigen is simply the insertion of the alloantigen into the same membrane bilayer as the syngeneic Ia restricting element.

Inhibition of T cell proliferation by antibodies to synthetic peptides

While T cell proliferation to antigen in the presence of antigen-presenting cells is well known to be readily inhibited by antibodies directed against Class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) (Ia/HLA-DR) products, it has not been possible to inhibit proliferation by antibodies directed against the antigen. Because of the implications of these observations for targets of T cell recognition, this phenomenon was reinvestigated using human T cell clones, recognizing a small (24 amino acid) synthetic peptide (termed p20) derived from the influenza hemagglutinin-1 molecule. It was found that proliferation of clones to p20 was inhibited efficiently (less than 90%), using p20 as antigen, and rabbit anti-p20. Inhibition was possible either by coculturing p20 antigen and antibody to p20 with cloned T cells and antigen-presenting (E-) cells, or by pulsing antigen-presenting cells with antigen prior to a brief incubation with antibody before washing the E- cells and using them to stimulate cloned T cells. These results do not indicate why previous attempts had failed, but in view of the different techniques available now (cloned T cells, small synthetic polypeptides, and antibody raised against polypeptide) we investigated the influence of these parameters. It was found that, using cloned T cells, the form of the antigen was of importance, as antibody inhibition of the response to hemagglutinin or whole influenza A was much less apparent. These differences were interpreted as being due to greater access of anti-p20 to p20 than to hemagglutinin or influenza. If uncloned T cell lines were used, inhibition was also much harder to detect. This was interpreted as masking of inhibition of the response of some clones in the line by interleukin 2-induced recruitment.

The cellular compartmentalization of macrophage-associated nominal antigen: immunologically relevant macrophage-associated antigen may not require an intracellular phase of macrophage handling

It has been hypothesized that internalization and "processing" of the nominal antigen by antigen-presenting cells may be a mandatory event in antigen handling prior to cell surface presentation of the immunologically relevant moiety to T lymphocytes. In previous functional and immunochemical analyses of macrophage (M phi)-associated nominal antigen, we obtained data strongly suggesting that an immunologically relevant pool of antigen was detectable on the surface of M phi pulsed with a soluble protein antigen and then aged for 3-24 h. To provide further information about requisite events of M phi antigen handling, we have attempted to this study to determine the origin of the nominal antigen associated with the surface of the pulsed-aged cell using the terpolymer L-glutamic acid, L-lysine, L-tyrosine (GLT) as the antigen. The surface-bound GLT, after a 24-h culture, appeared to be derived from GLT initially surface-associated after the pulse. No evidence was obtained to support the notion that a significant quantity of GLT, initially internalized after the pulse exposure, was recompartmentalized to the cell surface. The turnover of cell-surface GLT resembled the turnover of M phi membrane proteins in general. These results, therefore, imply that the crucial events of M phi antigen handling of GLT may entirely be a cell surface phenomenon.

Nature of the antigenic complex recognized by T lymphocytes. VIII. Specific inhibition of the stimulatory capacity of antigen-pulsed hapten-modified peritoneal exudate cells by anti-hapten antibody

When macrophages which were pulsed with soluble protein antigens and then modified with 2,4,6-trinitrobenzenesulfonic acid (TNBS) were cultured with primed T cells in the presence of anti-2,4,6-trinitrophenyl (TNP) antiserum, a marked inhibition of the T cell proliferative response specific for the soluble protein antigen under study was observed. Inhibition of the proliferative response required that the protein antigen under study be easily susceptible to conjugation with TNBS. A lag period of 1-3 h must elapse following pulse exposure to the protein antigen and prior to TNP modification for anti-TNP antibody to exert an inhibitory effect, which suggests that processing of antigen in an intracellular site might occur with subsequent reexpression of antigen on the macrophage surface. It was hypothesized that anti-TNP antibody inhibits T cell proliferation by capping and shedding of TNP-modified determinants of the nominal antigen as well as TNP-modified cell surface proteins from the macrophage membrane. The failure of others to demonstrate an effect of anti-antigen antibody on T cell activation can best be explained as secondary to the low density of antigenic determinants on the macrophage membrane with resultant low-affinity binding of antibody to antigen.