Immune-Mobilizing Monoclonal T Cell Receptors Mediate Specific and Rapid Elimination of Hepatitis B-Infected Cells.

Background And Aims: Therapies for chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection are urgently needed because of viral integration, persistence of viral antigen expression, inadequate HBV-specific immune responses, and treatment regimens that require lifelong adherence to suppress the virus. Immune mobilizing monoclonal T Cell receptors against virus (ImmTAV) molecules represent a therapeutic strategy combining an affinity-enhanced T Cell receptor with an anti-CD3 T Cell-activating moiety. This bispecific fusion protein redirects T cells to specifically lyse infected cells expressing the target virus-derived peptides presented by human leukocyte antigen (HLA).

Chemokine receptor CXCR3 agonist prevents human T-cell migration in a humanized model of arthritic inflammation.

The recruitment of T lymphocytes during diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis is regulated by stimulation of the chemokine receptors expressed by these cells. This study was designed to assess the potential of a CXCR3-specific small-molecule agonist to inhibit the migration of activated human T cells toward multiple chemokines. Further experiments defined the molecular mechanism for this anti-inflammatory activity.

Presentation of the candidate rheumatoid arthritis autoantigen aggrecan by antigen-specific B cells induces enhanced CD4(+) T helper type 1 subset differentiation.

Effective immune responses require antigen uptake by antigen-presenting cells (APC), followed by controlled endocytic proteolysis resulting in the generation of antigen-derived peptide fragments that associate with intracellular MHC class II molecules. The resultant peptide-MHC class II complexes then move to the APC surface where they activate CD4(+) T cells. Dendritic cells (DC), macrophages and B cells act as efficient APC.