Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
10940999 | Immunobiology | 2013 | 6 Pages |
Abstract
Mucormycosis has a high mortality and is increasingly diagnosed in hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) recipients. In this setting, there is a growing interest to restore host defense to combat infections by adoptively transferring donor-derived immunocompetent cells. Natural killer (NK) cells exhibit antitumor and antiinfective activity, but the interaction with Mucormycetes is unknown. Our data demonstrate that both unstimulated and IL-2 prestimulated human NK cells damage Rhizopus oryzae hyphae, but do not affect resting conidia. The damage of the fungus is mediated, at least in part, by perforin. R. oryzae hyphae decrease the secretion of immunoregulatory molecules by NK cells, such as IFN-γ and RANTES, indicating an immunosuppressive effect of the fungus. Our data indicate that NK cells exhibit activity against Mucormycetes and future research should evaluate NK cells as a potential tool for adoptive immunotherapy in HSCT.
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Authors
Stanislaw Schmidt, Lars Tramsen, Susanne Perkhofer, Cornelia Lass-Flörl, Mitra Hanisch, Frauke Röger, Thomas Klingebiel, Ulrike Koehl, Thomas Lehrnbecher,