Non-MHC-restricted, tissue-specific T cells recognizing autologous oligodendrocytes in the normal SJL/J mouse.

The oligodendrocyte (OD), a glial cell that produces myelin in the central nervous system (CNS), represents a possible target for autoreactive T cells in autoimmune demyelinating processes. To analyze OD/T lymphocyte interactions, we sensitized in vitro SJL/J mouse spleen cells (SC) over Lewis rat OD cultures and maintained them as long-term T-cell lines in interleukin-2 (IL-2)-containing medium. The proliferative response of these lines could be elicited by syngeneic OD as well as by Lewis rat OD, but appeared to be tissue-specific since SC failed to trigger their proliferation. A T-cell clone of the CD3+, CD8+, CD4- phenotype was obtained from these lines. This clone could mount an IL-2-dependent, tissue-specific, non-major histocompatibility complex (MHC)-restricted proliferative response to OD from rat, guinea pig and various strains of mice (including syngeneic OD), but not to SC, whether resting or activated, nor to astrocytes, kidney cells or Langerhans islets. Thus, we showed that SC from normal unimmunized SJL/J mice include a so far undescribed anti-OD autoreactive T-cell population which can be grown in vitro and develop tissue-specific, non-MHC-restricted proliferative responses.