Highly efficient antigen targeting to M-DC8+ dendritic cells via FcRIII/CD16-specific antibody conjugates
Ines Mende1, Patrick Hoffmann1, Andreas Wolf1, Ralf Lutterbüse1, Eugen Kopp2, Patrick A. Baeuerle1, Annegret de Baey3 and Peter Kufer1,2
International Immunology 2005 17(5):539-547; doi:10.1093/intimm/dxh232
1 Micromet AG, Staffelseestrasse 2, 81477 Munich, Germany
2 Institute for Immunology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Goethestrasse 31, 80336 Munich, Germany
3 Techno Venture Management, Maximilianstrasse 35C, 80539 Munich, Germany
Correspondence to: P. Kufer; E-mail: peter.kufer@micromet.de
Conjugates of peptide antigens with antibodies specifically recognizing surface molecules on dendritic cells (DC) represent an attractive approach to target antigens to antigen-presenting cells (APC) for the induction of specific T cell responses. The present study evaluates the potential of M-DC8+ DC, a sub-population of professional APC in the blood, for an antibody-based vaccination strategy. We prepared, by chemical cross-linking, conjugates of peptide model antigens with antibodies directed against different cell surface molecules of DC. Antigen–peptide conjugates using an anti-CD16 (FcRIII) antibody were most potent in inducing in vitro activation of a specific CD4+ T cell response. They were at least 300 times more efficient than two other antibody–antigen conjugates and 500 times more efficient than unconjugated antigen peptides. Our data demonstrate that specific antigen targeting via CD16 on M-DC8+ DC is a promising vaccination approach for the efficient induction of specific CD4+ T cell responses ex vivo, and perhaps in vivo.
Keywords: antibodies, antigen presentation, dendritic cells, Fc receptors, vaccination
Transmitting editor: T. Huenig |
