| Mycobacterium avium (M. avium) is an opportunistic pathogen that is readily cleared by immunocompetent hosts yet causes severe disease and morbidity in immunocompromised individuals. Clearance of M. avium requires CD4+ T cell responses, however little is known about the mechanism by which M. avium elicits adaptive immunity. To assess the role that DC and Mphis may play in the clearance of M. avium, bone marrow-derived DC and Mphis, generated from C57BL/6 mice, were analyzed for activation, phagocytic ability, survival upon infection with M. avium genomic strain MAC 104 and induction of T cell responses as measured by T cell proliferation and production of IFN-gamma. The cells were infected for 4 h at a multiplicity of infection of 3 or 5 and were accessed 0, 24, 48, and 72 h post-infection. All comparisons were made to non-infected controls. The data provides evidence for differential roles of DC and Mphis in M. avium clearance. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)... |
