Inhibition of lymphocyte proliferation and activation: a mechanism used by equine invasive trophoblast to escape the maternal immune response

The lymphoproliferative inhibitory mechanism affected lymphocyte subpopulations similarly. In addition, lymphocyte expression of cytokine mRNA including IFNγ, IL-2, IL-4, and IL-10 was affected compared to controls. The implication of these observations in vivo may explain, in part, the apparent equine maternal immune acceptance of the presence and development of endometrial cup cells.