<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> Recombinant antibodies which deliver T cell epitopes of gliadin peptides causitive of celiac disease to antigen-presenting cells in the thymus might be used to induce deletion of the thymocytes (immature T cells) involved in celiac disease pathogenesis, preventing or ameliorating celiac disease. Experiments which inject such antibodies into mice show promise. ---------- Eur J Immunol. 2005 Sep 23; [Epub ahead of print] Induction of central T cell tolerance: Recombinant antibodies deliver peptides for deletion of antigen-specific CD4(+)8(+) thymocytes. Schjetne KW, Thommesen JE, Fredriksen AB, Lunde E, Sandlie I, Bogen B. Institute of Immunology, University of Oslo and Rikshospitalet University Hospital, Oslo, Norway. In order to prevent or ameliorate autoimmune disease, it would be desirable to induce central tolerance to peripheral self-antigens. We have investigated whether recombinant antibodies (Ab) that deliver T cell epitopes to antigen-presenting cells (APC) in the thymus can be used to induce thymocyte deletion. Troybodies are recombinant Ab with V regions specific for APC surface molecules that have T cell epitopes genetically introduced in their C domains. When MHC class II-specific Troybodies with the lambda2(315 )T cell epitope were injected into lambda2(315)-specific TCR transgenic mice, a profound deletion of CD4(+)8(+) thymocytes was observed. MHC class II-specific Troybodies were 10-100-fold more efficient than non-targeting peptide Ab, and 500-fold more efficient than synthetic peptide at inducing deletion. Similar findings were observed when MHC class II-specific Troybodies with the OVA(323-339) T cell epitope were injected into OVA-specific TCR transgenic mice. Although deletion was transient after a single injection, newborn mice repeatedly injected with MHC class II-specific Troybodies for 4 weeks, had reduced antigen-specific T cells in peripheral lymphoid tissues and reduced T cell responses. These experiments suggest that Troybodies constructed to target specifically thymic APC could be useful tools for induction and maintenance of central T cell tolerance in autoimmune diseases. PMID: 16184515 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] * * * *Support summarization of posts, reply to the SENDER not the CELIAC List*