Synapsin-induced proliferation of T-cell lines against myelin basic protein obtained from rats with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis

Abstract

We have previously described that antibodies and T cells against myelin basic protein (MBP) rose under conditions to induce acute experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) bind other proteins present in the synaptosomal fraction, some of them identified as synapsin I. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether anti-MBP T-cell lines can be also activated by synapsin. The analysis of rat anti-MBP T-cell lines cultured with each antigen showed that these cells responded also to purified rat synapsin and to the amino terminal portion of this protein. This recognition originated a proliferative response with a concomitant pattern of cytokine secretion similar to that induced by MBP itself implicating that this recognition would be mediated by the T-cell receptor. On the other hand, anti-synapsin T-cell lines were not capable of responding to MBP stimulation. Therefore, the immunological cross-reactivity between both proteins occurs only in one direction and these cross-reactive cells would be elicited only in animals sensitized with MBP. A possible implication of immunological agents against MBP cross-reactive with extra-myelin proteins in the process of EAE is considered.

Keywords::

• autoimmunity
• cytokines
• experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis
• myelin basic protein
• synapsin
• synaptosomal antigens

Acknowledgements

We are deeply grateful to Dr Dvora Teitelbaum and Dr Ruth Arnon from The Weizmann Institute of Science for their advice and the use of their facilities throughout this study. We also thank Dr Paul Greengard for providing the expression vectors encoding both halves of rat Synapsin I. This work was supported in part by grants from Consejo de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (BID 1201/OC-AR, PICT 05-04318, 05-10607 and 31675), Fundación Antorchas, Agencia Córdoba Ciencia S.E. and Secretaría de Ciencia y Técnica de la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba (SeCyT-UNC), Argentina. ALD was a fellow and GAR is a senior career investigator from CONICET.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.