Article ID Journal Published Year Pages File Type
3070552 Neurobiology of Disease 2007 15 Pages PDF
Abstract

Myelin degeneration in the central nervous system (CNS) is often associated with elevated numbers of T cells in brain and spinal cord (SC). In some degenerative diseases, this T cell immigration has no clinical relevance, in others, it may precede severe inflammation and tissue damage. We studied T cells in the myelin-degenerative SC of transgenic (tg) Lewis rats overexpressing the proteolipid protein (PLP). These lymphocytes are TH1/TC1 cells and represent different T cell clones unique to individual animals. The SC-infiltrating CD8+ T cell pool is more restricted than its CD4+ counterpart, possibly due to constrictions in the peripheral CD8+ T cell repertoire. Some SC-infiltrating T cells are highly motile and cover large distances within their target tissue, others are tethered to MHC class II+ microglia cells. The activation of the tethered cells may trigger the formation of inflammatory foci and could pave the way for inflammation in degenerative CNS disease.

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