Stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells from chlamydia-infected women release predominantly Th1-polarizing cytokines

• Published in: Cytokine (Philadelphia, Pa.) Vol. 113; pp. 458 - 461
• Main Authors: Jordan, Stephen J., Bakshi, Rakesh K., Brown, LaDraka' T., Chi, Xiaofei, Geisler, William M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.01.2019
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Chlamydia; Chlamydia trachomatis - immunology; Cytokines; Cytokines - blood; Cytokines - immunology; Female; Humans; Lymphogranuloma Venereum - blood; Lymphogranuloma Venereum - immunology; Lymphogranuloma Venereum - pathology; Middle Aged; Peripheral blood mononuclear cells; Th1; Th1 Cells - immunology; Th1 Cells - metabolism; Th1 Cells - pathology; Th2; Th2 Cells - immunology; Th2 Cells - metabolism; Th2 Cells - pathology; Peripheral blood mononuclear cells; Cytokines; Chlamydia; Th1; Th2
• ISSN: 1043-4666; 1096-0023
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cyto.2018.06.017

•PBMCs from women with chlamydia preferentially mount Th1 cytokines upon stimulation.•IFN-γ was the predominant Th1 cytokine produced by PBMCs upon stimulation.•Stimulated PBMCs from women with chlamydia rarely produced IL-4 and IL-13.•Stimulation with chlamydia elementary bodies elicited higher IFN-γ levels than Pgp3. Chlamydia trachomatis infection (chlamydia) is the most prevalent sexually transmitted bacterial infection and causes significant reproductive morbidity in women. Little is known about how immunity to chlamydia develops in women, though animal models of chlamydia indicate that T-helper type 1 (Th1) responses are important for chlamydia clearance and protective immunity, whereas T-helper type 2 (Th2) responses are associated with persisting infection. In chlamydia-infected women, whether the predominant immune response is Th1- or Th2-polarizing remains controversial. To determine the cytokine profiles elicited by peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from chlamydia-infected women, we stimulated PBMCs with C. trachomatis elementary bodies and recombinant C. trachomatis Pgp3 and measured supernatant levels of select cytokines spanning Th1- and Th2-polarizing responses. We found that stimulated PBMCs from chlamydia-infected women secreted cytokines that indicate strong Th1-polarizing responses, especially interferon-gamma, whereas Th2-polarizing cytokines were expressed at significantly lower levels. In chlamydia-infected women, the predominant cytokine responses elicited on stimulation of PBMCs with C. trachomatis antigens were Th1-polarizing, with interferon-gamma as the predominant cytokine.