Fig. 3.
Alteration of inflammatory environment. The cytokine production by BM-MSC and CMPC only, by T cells only, and upon co-culture of stem cells and T cells was measured by Luminex assays. A. Pro-inflammatory TH1 cytokines cytokines IFN-gamma, TNF-alpha and IL-12 are produced by stimulated T cells but down-regulated upon co-culturing with both BM-MSC and CMPC. A significant reduction in these cytokines in the conditioned medium indicated an environment that does not support the development of TH1 cells. B. The development of TH2 cells is determined by the presence of IL-4, IL-5 and IL-13. These cytokines are all upregulated in response to T cell activation and are significantly suppressed in the presence of progenitor cells. C. The release of IL-1b, which is produced by BM-MSC and CMPC yet hardly by T cells, is further increased upon co-culture with T cells. D. Release of IL-10, a supposedly anti-inflammatory cytokine, is strongly suppressed when progenitor cells are present in the co-culture, yet highly produced by stimulated T cells. For values see also Table 1. ***p < 0.001 and **p < 0.01.