Effect of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells on Xenogeneic T and B Cells Isolated from Lupus-Prone MRL.Faslpr Mice

• Main Authors: Hong Kyung Lee, Eun Young Kim, Hyung Sook Kim, Eun Jae Park, Hye Jin Lee, Tae Yong Lee, Kyung Suk Kim, Sang-Cheol Bae, Jin Tae Hong, Youngsoo Kim, Sang-Bae Han
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hindawi Limited 2020-01-01
• Series: Stem Cells International
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2020/5617192

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an autoimmune disease, which is characterized by hyperactivation of T and B cells. Human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) ameliorate the progression of SLE in preclinical studies using lupus-prone MRL.Faslpr mice. However, whether hMSCs inhibit the functions of xenogeneic mouse T and B cells is not clear. To address this issue, we examined the in vitro effects of hMSCs on T and B cells isolated from MRL.Faslpr mice. Naïve hMSCs inhibited the functions of T cells but not B cells. hMSCs preconditioned with IFN-γ (i) inhibited the proliferation of and IgM production by B cells, (ii) attracted B cells for cell–cell interactions in a CXCL10-dependent manner, and (iii) inhibited B cells by producing indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase. In summary, our data demonstrate that hMSCs exert therapeutic activity in mice in three steps: first, naïve hMSCs inhibit the functions of T cells, hMSCs are then activated by IFN-γ, and finally, they inhibit B cells.