Secretion of interleukin-10 or interleukin-12 by LPS-activated dendritic cells is critically dependent on time of stimulus relative to initiation of purified DC culture.

Dendritic cells (DC) are key regulators of adaptive immunity with the potential to induce T cell activation/immunity or T cell suppression/tolerance. DC are themselves induced by "maturation" signals such as bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS). We demonstrate here that LPS can stimulate DC to display similar maturation phenotypes but to differentiate toward an interleukin (IL)-10(high)- or IL-12(high)-secretor profile depending on the timing of maturation signal induction.

Total dose and frequency of administration critically affect success of nasal mucosal tolerance induction.

Aims: Nasal tolerance induction with autoantigens can effectively protect against a variety of experimental models of autoimmune disease. The aims of this study were to characterise the dosage and kinetics of inhibition of experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU) via intranasal administration of the uveitogenic antigen interphotoreceptor retinal binding protein (IRBP) in the murine model of IRBP induced EAU.

Methods: B10RIII mice were tolerised by intranasal administration of IRBP either with a long term multiple low dose or a short term/high dosing regimen before subcutaneous immunisation with IRBP in complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA).

IL-18 not required for IRBP peptide-induced EAU: studies in gene-deficient mice.

Purpose: Interleukin (IL)-18 has been described as a proinflammatory cytokine in rheumatoid arthritis and bacterial infectious diseases. The present study was designed to determine the role of IL-18 in a model of ocular experimental autoimmune uveitis (EAU). The initial studies were conducted to detect the expression of IL-18 in normal mouse eye tissue, and the later studies investigated induction of EAU in mice with an IL-18(-/-) phenotype.

Macrophages and dendritic cells in IRBP-induced experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis in B10RIII mice.

Purpose: To investigate the characteristics of the mononuclear cell infiltrate in murine experimental autoimmune uveoretinitis (EAU).

Methods: EAU was induced by immunization with bovine interphotoreceptor retinal binding protein (IRBP) in Freund's complete adjuvant (subcutaneous injection) and pertussis toxin (intraperitoneal injection) in B10RIII mouse. Then animals were killed on days 7, 9, 12, 15, 20, 26, and 39 after immunization.