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. 1996 Aug 1;184(2):747–752. doi: 10.1084/jem.184.2.747

Ligation of CD40 on dendritic cells triggers production of high levels of interleukin-12 and enhances T cell stimulatory capacity: T-T help via APC activation

PMCID: PMC2192696  PMID: 8760829

Abstract

We investigated the possibility that T helper cells might enhance the stimulatory function of dendritic cells (DCs). We found that ligation of CD40 by CD40L triggers the production of extremely high levels of bioactive IL-12. Other stimuli such as microbial agents, TNF-alpha or LPS are much less effective or not at all. In addition, CD40L is the most potent stimulus in upregulating the expression of ICAM-1, CD80, and CD86 molecules on DCs. These effects of CD40 ligation result in an increased capacity of DCs to trigger proliferative responses and IFN- gamma production by T cells. These findings reveal a new role for CD40- CD40L interaction in regulating DC function and are relevant to design therapeutic strategies using cultured DCs.

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Selected References

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