The success of cancer vaccines is dependent on the delivery of tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) within lymphoid tissue in the context of costimulatory molecules and immune stimulatory cytokines. Dendritic cells (DCs) are commonly utilized to elicit antitumor immune responses due to their attractive costimulatory molecule and cytokine expression profile. However, the efficacy of DC-based vaccine...

Maturation of dendritic cells (DCs) induced by pathogen-derived signals via TLRs is a crucial step in the initiation of an adaptive immune response and therefore has to be well controlled. In this study, we demonstrate that oxidized phospholipids (ox-PLs), which are generated during infections, apoptosis, and tissue damage, interfere with DC activation, preventing their maturation. ox-PLs block...

We previously showed that naive CD4+ Th cells acquire peptide-MHC class I (pMHC I) and costimulatory molecules from OVA-pulsed dendritic cells (DC(OVA)), and act as Th-APCs in stimulation of CD8+ CTL responses. In this study, we further demonstrated that naive CD8+ cytotoxic T (Tc) cells also acquire pMHC I and costimulatory CD54 and CD80 molecules by DC(OVA) stimulation, and act as Tc-APC. The...

It is well established that T lymphocytes undergo homeostatic proliferation in lymphopenic environment. The homeostatic proliferation requires recognition of the major histocompatibility complex on the host. Recent studies have demonstrated that costimulation-mediated CD28, 4-1BB, and CD40 is not required for T cell homeostatic proliferation. It has been suggested that homeostatic proliferation...

ZYM-201 is a methyl ester of triterpenoid glycoside from Sanguisorba officinalis which has been used for treatment of inflammatory and metabolic diseases. In this study, immunomodulatory effects of ZYM-201 on B cells were examined in vitro and in vivo. When splenocytes were activated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), the major population which had shown an increase in cell numbers was B cells. How...

CpG-DNA has various immunomodulatory effects in dendritic cells, B cells, and macrophages. While induction of cytokines by CpG-DNA has been well documented in macrophages, the expression of costimulatory molecules in CpG-DNA treated macrophages has not yet been defined. Therefore, we investigated the effects of CpG-DNA on the expression of costimulatory molecules in RAW 264.7 cells. The surface...