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Hammel JH, Cook SR, Belanger MC, Munson JM, Pompano RR. Modeling Immunity In Vitro: Slices, Chips, and Engineered Tissues. Annu Rev Biomed Eng 2021; 23:461-491. [PMID: 33872520 PMCID: PMC8277680 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-bioeng-082420-124920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Modeling immunity in vitro has the potential to be a powerful tool for investigating fundamental biological questions, informing therapeutics and vaccines, and providing new insight into disease progression. There are two major elements to immunity that are necessary to model: primary immune tissues and peripheral tissues with immune components. Here, we systematically review progress made along three strategies to modeling immunity: ex vivo cultures, which preserve native tissue structure; microfluidic devices, which constitute a versatile approach to providing physiologically relevant fluid flow and environmental control; and engineered tissues, which provide precise control of the 3D microenvironment and biophysical cues. While many models focus on disease modeling, more primary immune tissue models are necessary to advance the field. Moving forward, we anticipate that the expansion of patient-specific models may inform why immunity varies from patient to patient and allow for the rapid comprehension and treatment of emerging diseases, such as coronavirus disease 2019.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer H Hammel
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute and Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Roanoke, Virginia 24016, USA;
| | - Sophie R Cook
- Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
| | - Maura C Belanger
- Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
| | - Jennifer M Munson
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute and Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics, Virginia Tech, Roanoke, Virginia 24016, USA;
| | - Rebecca R Pompano
- Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, USA;
- Carter Immunology Center and UVA Cancer Center, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, Virginia 22903, USA
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Belanger M, Ball AG, Catterton MA, Kinman AW, Anbaei P, Groff BD, Melchor SJ, Lukens JR, Ross AE, Pompano RR. Acute Lymph Node Slices Are a Functional Model System to Study Immunity Ex Vivo. ACS Pharmacol Transl Sci 2021; 4:128-142. [PMID: 33615167 PMCID: PMC7887751 DOI: 10.1021/acsptsci.0c00143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The lymph node is a highly organized and dynamic structure that is critical for facilitating the intercellular interactions that constitute adaptive immunity. Most ex vivo studies of the lymph node begin by reducing it to a cell suspension, thus losing the spatial organization, or fixing it, thus losing the ability to make repeated measurements. Live murine lymph node tissue slices offer the potential to retain spatial complexity and dynamic accessibility, but their viability, level of immune activation, and retention of antigen-specific functions have not been validated. Here we systematically characterized live murine lymph node slices as a platform to study immunity. Live lymph node slices maintained the expected spatial organization and cell populations while reflecting the 3D spatial complexity of the organ. Slices collected under optimized conditions were comparable to cell suspensions in terms of both 24-h viability and inflammation. Slices responded to T cell receptor cross-linking with increased surface marker expression and cytokine secretion, in some cases more strongly than matched lymphocyte cultures. Furthermore, slices processed protein antigens, and slices from vaccinated animals responded to ex vivo challenge with antigen-specific cytokine secretion. In summary, lymph node slices provide a versatile platform to investigate immune functions in spatially organized tissue, enabling well-defined stimulation, time-course analysis, and parallel read-outs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maura
C. Belanger
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Virginia College
of Arts and Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
- Carter
Immunology Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Alexander G. Ball
- Carter
Immunology Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
- Department
of Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Megan A. Catterton
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Virginia College
of Arts and Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Andrew W.L. Kinman
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Virginia College
of Arts and Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Parastoo Anbaei
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Virginia College
of Arts and Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Benjamin D. Groff
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Virginia College
of Arts and Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Stephanie J. Melchor
- Carter
Immunology Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
- Department
of Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - John R. Lukens
- Carter
Immunology Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
- Department
of Neuroscience and Center for Brain Immunology and Glia (BIG), University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
| | - Ashley E. Ross
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45220, United States
| | - Rebecca R. Pompano
- Department
of Chemistry, University of Virginia College
of Arts and Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
- Carter
Immunology Center, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
- Department
of Biomedical Engineering, University of
Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Charlottesville, Virginia 22904, United States
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3
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Modeling human adaptive immune responses with tonsil organoids. Nat Med 2021; 27:125-135. [PMID: 33432170 PMCID: PMC7891554 DOI: 10.1038/s41591-020-01145-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 127] [Impact Index Per Article: 42.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Most of what we know about adaptive immunity has come from inbred mouse studies, using methods that are often difficult or impossible to confirm in humans. In addition, vaccine responses in mice are often poorly predictive of responses to those same vaccines in humans. Here we use human tonsils, readily available lymphoid organs, to develop a functional organotypic system that recapitulates key germinal center features in vitro, including the production of antigen-specific antibodies, somatic hypermutation and affinity maturation, plasmablast differentiation and class-switch recombination. We use this system to define the essential cellular components necessary to produce an influenza vaccine response. We also show that it can be used to evaluate humoral immune responses to two priming antigens, rabies vaccine and an adenovirus-based severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 vaccine, and to assess the effects of different adjuvants. This system should prove useful for studying critical mechanisms underlying adaptive immunity in much greater depth than previously possible and to rapidly test vaccine candidates and adjuvants in an entirely human system.
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Guo L, Sun YL, Wang AH, Xu CE, Zhang MY. Effect of polysaccharides extract of rhizoma atractylodis macrocephalae on thymus, spleen and cardiac indexes, caspase-3 activity ratio, Smac/DIABLO and HtrA2/Omi protein and mRNA expression levels in aged rats. Mol Biol Rep 2012; 39:9285-90. [DOI: 10.1007/s11033-012-1677-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2011] [Accepted: 06/05/2012] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Giger B, Bonanomi A, Odermatt B, Ladell K, Speck RF, Kojic D, Berger C, Niggli FK, Nadal D. Human tonsillar tissue block cultures differ from autologous tonsillar cell suspension cultures in lymphocyte subset activation and cytokine gene expression. J Immunol Methods 2006; 289:179-90. [PMID: 15251423 DOI: 10.1016/j.jim.2004.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2003] [Revised: 03/29/2004] [Accepted: 04/19/2004] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Lymphoid tissues cultured either as tissue blocks or as cell suspensions are used to study the behaviour of immune cells within their habitat. The preservation of tissue structures in tissue blocks, which is considered to be a major advantage, has been poorly defined. We characterised the morphological evolution of tissue cultures from human palatine tonsils and compared their lymphocyte subsets and the constitutive cytokine gene expression to those in autologous tonsillar single-cell suspension cultures over time, and after adding cyclosporin A (CsA) to mimic the situation in individuals treated with immunosuppressive drugs. Density and morphology of follicles were conserved up to 4 days, during which tissue cultures exhibited similar cell viability as suspension cultures, but a significantly less frequent increase of CD95 expression in T cells, smaller variation of the proportion of CD4(+) cells and better CD21(+)/CD23(-) B-cell survival. Treatment with cyclosporin A at higher concentrations resulted in superior histologic preservation of lymphoid tissue structures and seemed to further prevent the expression of CD95 by CD3(+) cells and the activation in tissue culture of CD21(+) cells. Constitutive gene expression levels of the stromal cytokines interleukin (IL)-1beta and interleukin-6 in tissue culture were significantly higher than those in suspension cultures. These results suggest that tonsillar tissue cultures preserve their structure only for a limited time, during which they more closely reflect processes in vivo, including a state of iatrogenic immunosuppression, than do their cell suspension counterparts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bettina Giger
- Division of Infectious Diseases, University Children's Hospital of Zurich, Switzerland
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Talmadge J, Chavez J, Jacobs L, Munger C, Chinnah T, Chow JT, Williamson D, Yates K. Fractionation of Aloe vera L. inner gel, purification and molecular profiling of activity. Int Immunopharmacol 2005; 4:1757-73. [PMID: 15531292 DOI: 10.1016/j.intimp.2004.07.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Products derived from the inner gel of the Aloe vera L. plant have demonstrated multiple clinical activities, and are used routinely to accelerate wound healing. However, typical of natural products, the complex nature of Aloe vera gels may contribute to diverse pharmacologic activities. Our focus on the hematopoietic activities of Aloe vera extracts is extended by these functional studies, which used purified fractions from Aloe vera gel and included a preliminary organ-specific in vitro molecular profile. Studies using a >99% pure carbohydrate fraction from Aloe vera extracts revealed increased hematopoietic and hematologic activity compared to the starting material. In addition, this fraction differentially regulated liver and lung cytokine mRNA levels, resulting in significant increases in message for hematopoietic cytokines [granulocyte colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) and stem cell factor (SCF)]. This profile of activity differed from another fraction obtained from Aloe vera, suggesting the potential for diverse pharmacologic activity. The molecular studies were undertaken using co-cultures of organ slices to limit the amount of purified material required. In summary, these studies revealed significant hematopoietic activity by both pharmacologic and molecular analysis using a >99% pure carbohydrate fraction from Aloe vera gels.
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Affiliation(s)
- James Talmadge
- Laboratory of Transplantation Immunology, Department of Pathology and Microbiology, University of Nebraska Medical Center, 987660 Nebraska Medical Center, South 42nd Street, Omaha, NE 68198-7660, USA.
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Audigé A, Schlaepfer E, Bonanomi A, Joller H, Knuchel MC, Weber M, Nadal D, Speck RF. HIV-1 does not provoke alteration of cytokine gene expression in lymphoid tissue after acute infection ex vivo. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2004; 172:2687-96. [PMID: 14764744 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.172.4.2687] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The cytokine response to invading microorganisms is critical for priming the adaptive immune response. During acute HIV infection, the response is disrupted, but the mechanism is poorly understood. We examined the cytokine response in human lymphoid tissue, acutely infected ex vivo with HIV. Lymphoid tissue was cultured either as blocks or as human lymphocyte aggregate cultures (HLAC) of tonsils and lymph nodes. This approach allowed us to examine the effects of HIV on cytokines using distinct culture techniques. In contrast to HLAC, mock-infected tissue blocks displayed a 50- to 100-fold up-regulation of mRNAs for IL-1beta, -6, and -8 in the first 6 days of culture. Parallel increases were also noted at the protein level in the supernatants. Although IL-1beta, -6, and -8 are known to synergistically enhance HIV replication, peak HIV replication (measured as p24 Ag) was similar in tissue blocks and HLAC. Surprisingly, vigorous HIV replication of CXCR4- and CCR5-tropic HIV strains did not result in characteristic mRNA profiles for IL-1beta, -2, -4, -6, -8, -10, -12, -15, IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha, TGF-beta, and beta-chemokines in tissue blocks or HLAC. The increased expression of IL-1beta, -6, and -8 in tissue blocks may approximate clinical situations with heightened immune activation; neutralization of these cytokines resulted in inhibition of HIV replication, suggesting that these cytokines may contribute to HIV replication in certain clinical settings. These results also indicate that different molecular mechanisms govern HIV replication in tissue blocks and HLAC. Prevention of effective cytokine responses may be an important mechanism that HIV uses during acute infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annette Audigé
- Division of Infectious Diseases and Hospital Epidemiology, Institute of Clinical Immunology, and Clinic of Visceral and Transplantation Surgery, University Hospital of Zurich, Switzerland.
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Skibinski G, Skibinska A, James K. The role of hepatocyte growth factor and its receptor c-met in interactions between lymphocytes and stromal cells in secondary human lymphoid organs. Immunology 2001; 102:506-14. [PMID: 11328385 PMCID: PMC1783204 DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2567.2001.01186.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Secondary lymphoid tissue consists of two major populations of cells: lymphoid cells and stromal cells. It is generally accepted that these two cell populations influence each other however, factors mediating these processes are poorly understood. In this paper we characterize one of the possible means of communication between stroma and lymphocytes namely through hepatocyte growth factor/c-met receptor interactions. Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is a pleiotropic factor that is mainly produced by mesenchymal cells and acts on cells of epithelial origin which express the HGF receptor c-met. Here we demonstrate that biologically active HGF is constitutively produced by fibroblast-like stromal cells from human lymphoid tissues. HGF secretion from stromal cells was increased by direct contact with activated T cells. This increase was abrogated when activated T cells were separated physically from stromal cells. Using neutralizing antibody or cytokine inhibitors we provide evidence that enhancement of HGF production was due to additive effects of T-cell membrane-associated interleukin-1 (IL-1) and CD40 ligand. Finally, we also show that B lymphocytes activated with CD40L/anti-mu or phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA) express c-met receptor. Co-culture of activated B cells with stromal cells from spleen leads to enhanced production of immunoglobulins. This can be partially inhibited by introduction of anti-HGF neutralizing antibodies to the culture system. Substitution of stromal cells with recombinant HGF did not produce enhancement of immunoglobulin secretion. On the other hand stimulation of c-met receptor with HGF leads to enhanced integrin-mediated adhesion of activated B cells to vascular cell adhesion molecule (VCAM-1) and fibronectin. On the basis of the above experiments we conclude that HGF production by fibroblast-like stromal cells can be modulated by activated T cells, thus providing signals for the regulation of adhesion of c-met expressing B cells to extracellular matrix proteins. In this way HGF may indirectly influence immunoglobulin secretion by B cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Skibinski
- Department of Clinical and Surgical Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
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Young DG, Skibinski G, Skibinska A, Mason JI, James K. Preliminary studies on the effect of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) on both constitutive and phytohaemagglutinin (PHA)-inducible IL-6 and IL-2 mRNA expression and cytokine production in human spleen mononuclear cell suspensions in vitro. Clin Exp Immunol 2001; 123:28-35. [PMID: 11167994 PMCID: PMC1905953 DOI: 10.1046/j.1365-2249.2001.01445.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In order to gain further insight into the potential immunological benefits of oral administration of DHEA we have examined its effects on the constitutive and PHA-inducible expression by human spleen cell suspensions in vitro of IL-6 and IL-2. This was studied at both the mRNA and protein levels. The quantification of specific mRNA was undertaken using commercially available quantitative polymerase chain reaction kits. These studies, which were performed on suspensions from six individual spleens, revealed that 10(-5) M DHEA did not impair the expression of IL-6 at either the mRNA or protein level, but may have slightly enhanced the latter. In contrast, IL-2 mRNA levels were increased on most occasions, whilst IL-2 secretion was decreased, albeit slightly. Additional studies revealed that cyclosporin (approx. 10(-5) M) and dexamethasone (10(-7) M) readily inhibited these responses and the production of other cytokines, including interferon-gamma and tumour necrosis factor-alpha. These preliminary studies suggest that high doses of DHEA do not readily inhibit the production of IL-6, and indeed other cytokines, by PHA-stimulated secondary human lymphoid tissue suspensions in vitro. They may also partially explain the meagre immunomodulatory effects noted in some DHEA replacement studies in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- D G Young
- Department of Clinical and Surgical Sciences (Surgery) and Reproductive and Developmental Sciences (Clinical Biochemistry), University of Edinburgh, Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh, UK
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Abstract
The identification of distinct T helper lymphocyte subsets (Th1/2) with polarised cytokine production has opened up new fields in immunobiology. Of the several alternative methods of monitoring cytokine production, flow cytometric analysis of intracellular staining has distinct advantages and pitfalls. It allows high throughput of samples and multiparameter characterisation of cytokine production on a single cell basis without the need for prolonged in vitro culture and cloning. However, these methods may cause important changes in cell surface phenotype which can make interpretation difficult.
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Affiliation(s)
- P Pala
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, National Heart and Lung Institute, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, W2 1PG, London, UK.
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Skibinski G, Skibinska A, Stewart GD, James K. Enhancement of terminal B lymphocyte differentiation in vitro by fibroblast-like stromal cells from human spleen. Eur J Immunol 1998; 28:3940-8. [PMID: 9862330 DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1521-4141(199812)28:12<3940::aid-immu3940>3.0.co;2-l] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Stromal elements are major components of lymphoid tissues contributing to both tissue architecture and function. In this study we report on the phenotype and function of fibroblast-like stromal cells obtained from human spleen. These cells express high levels of CD44 and ICAM-1 and moderate levels of VLA-4, VCAM, CD40 and CD21. They fail to express endothelial, epithelial, lymphocyte and monocyte/macrophage markers. We show that these cells interact with B cell blasts induced in vitro by anti-CD40 and anti-mu stimulation. As a result of these interactions both IL-6 and IgG secretion into culture medium is increased. The enhanced secretion of IgG is partly inhibited by abolishing B cell blaststromal cell contact or by anti-IL-6, anti-VCAM or anti-CD49d antibodies. Our studies also suggest that the ability of stromal cells to promote B cell survival is most likely the underlying mechanism of the enhanced immunoglobulin secretion. Comparison of stromal cells from different lymphoid and non-lymphoid organs revealed that bone marrow- and spleen-derived stromal cells are the most effective in promoting B cell blast differentiation.
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Affiliation(s)
- G Skibinski
- Lister Research Laboratories, University Department of Surgery, Royal Infirmary, Edinburgh, GB.
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