Comparative phenotypic and functional analysis of migratory dendritic cell subsets from human oral mucosa and skin.

Antigen exposure to oral mucosa is generally thought to lead to immune tolerance induction. However, very little is known about the subset composition and function of dendritic cells (DC) migrating from human oral mucosa. Here we show that migratory DC from healthy human gingival explants consist of the same phenotypic subsets in the same frequency distribution as DC migrating from human skin.

MUTZ-3 Langerhans cell maturation and CXCL12 independent migration in reconstructed human gingiva.

Here we describe a reconstructed full thickness human oral mucosa (gingiva) equivalent with integrated Langerhans Cells (GE-LC) and use it to compare LC activation and migration from oral versus skin epithelium. The physiologically representative models consist of differentiated reconstructed epithelium (keratinocytes and Langerhans-like cells derived from the MUTZ-3 cell line) on a fibroblast-populated collagen hydrogel which serves as a lamina propria for gingiva and dermis for skin. Topical exposure of GE-LC and the skin equivalent (SE-LC) to sub-toxic concentrations of the allergens cinnamaldehyde, resorcinol and nickel sulphate, resulted in LC migration out of the epithelia.

Gingiva Equivalents Secrete Negligible Amounts of Key Chemokines Involved in Langerhans Cell Migration Compared to Skin Equivalents.

Both oral mucosa and skin have the capacity to maintain immune homeostasis or regulate immune responses upon environmental assault. Whereas much is known about key innate immune events in skin, little is known about oral mucosa. Comparative studies are limited due to the scarce supply of oral mucosa for ex vivo studies.

MUTZ-3 derived Langerhans cells in human skin equivalents show differential migration and phenotypic plasticity after allergen or irritant exposure.

After allergen or irritant exposure, Langerhans cells (LC) undergo phenotypic changes and exit the epidermis. In this study we describe the unique ability of MUTZ-3 derived Langerhans cells (MUTZ-LC) to display similar phenotypic plasticity as their primary counterparts when incorporated into a physiologically relevant full-thickness skin equivalent model (SE-LC). We describe differences and similarities in the mechanisms regulating LC migration and plasticity upon allergen or irritant exposure.

Generation, subsets and functions of inducible regulatory T cells.

The idea of regulatory T cells (Tregs) lost its popularity during the 1980s and 1990s, since immunologists failed to elucidate how the innate regulation of immunological reactions worked. The entire re-evaluation of the Tregs was supported due to the increasingly influential and state of the art immunological techniques, as cell sorting and also the expanding understanding of the immune system and its functions which aided in attaining a greater insight into the mechanisms of regulation and suppression. Many researchers nowadays have demonstrated that Tregs may well have therapeutic possibilities for the treatment of autoimmune diseases if it was a possibility to isolate and infuse these Tregs into patients, preferably without any harmful side effects.