Fol. Biol. 2001, 47, 153-155
Genetically Modified Dendritic Cell-Based Cancer Vaccines
Dendritic cells (DC) are professional antigen-presenting cells that play a central role in the induction of T cell-mediated immunity. They are found in most of the non-lymphoid and all lymphoid tissues of the body, where they specialize in capturing and processing antigens. Two functions of APC segregate in time. First, the immature DC internalize and process the antigen. Then, several days later, they express the processed antigen in the form of a peptide bound to major histocompatibility complex ( M C ) molecules on the cell surface, migrate to secondary lymphoid organs, differentiate into mature DC, and stimulate T cells. The CD8+ T cells are stimulated in the context o f MHC class I molecules, whereas the CD4+T cells in the context of MHC class II molecules. Dendritic cells activate T cells through a two-signal mechanism. The first (МНС-peptide) signal is antigen-specific and causes T cells to enter the cell cycle. The second (co-stimulatory) signal is antigen-nonspecific and involves a set of co-stimulatory molecules expressed on DC that interact with ligands on the T-cell surface. The second signal induces T-cell cytokine production as well as subsequent T-cell proliferation (Banchereau and Steinman, 1998; Bubeník, 2001).
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