Figure 7.

Representative diagram for the differential programming of human peripheral blood monocytes by interferon-γ (IFN-γ). Dendritic cells developed under standard conditions with granulocyte–macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interleukin-4 (IL-4) are capable of being matured by IFN-γ into efficient stimulators of antigen-specific CD8⁺ and CD4⁺ T cells. In contrast, monocytes exposed to low concentrations of IFN-γ during differentiation generate dendritic cells that induce a decrease in antigen-specific T-cell responsiveness and have impaired maturation upon a re-challenge with IFN-γ or LPS.