Figure 8. CD4⁺ T cells contribute to the development of gastritis in AID^−/− mice.

Gastric mucosa-infiltrating CD4⁺ T cells or CD8⁺ T cells were isolated from 12 month old AID^−/− mice and were adoptively transferred into BALB/c^nu/nu mice. After 3 months, the stomachs of recipient mice were removed and subjected to the following experiments. (A) Gastric tissue sections were stained with H&E for histological examination. (B) Stomach weights were normalized to body weight of each mouse. (C) Gastric tissue sections were examined by histology and assigned a pathological score. (D) Immunofluorescence staining revealed a massive infiltration of CD4⁺ and Mac1⁺ cells into the stomachs of BALB/c^nu/nu mice that received CD4⁺ T cells by adoptive transfer. (E) Gastric CD3⁺CD4⁺ cells enriched with a MACS column were treated with PMA and Golgi-stop for 6 hr and analyzed for cytokine production by intracellular staining. (F) CD4⁺ T cells recovered from gastric tissues of CD4⁺ T-cell-transferred BALB/c^nu/nu mice were stimulated with anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 mAbs for 48 h. Cytokine concentrations in the culture supernatants were measured by CBA and ELISA. Scale bars: 100 µm.