The activation of death receptors (DR) can modulate differentiation and survival of cells through specialized intracellular signalling pathways. In cells of the immune system the relevance of this process is still controversial. This study investigated the characterization of a transgenic mouse that expresses under control of the vav promotor in hematopoietic cells a fusion gene containing cFLIPS, an inhibitor of DR induced apoptosis, and the green fluorescent protein (GFP). The expression of the fusion protein could be shown by its fluorescence and, functionally, inhibition of CD95 induced apoptosis.
Surprisingly, the activation of lymphocytic subpopulations was not affected by cFLIPS, whereas the stimulation of unsorted spleen cells by mitogen resulted in an enhanced proliferation of T-lymphocytes. This effect was likely due to an improved stimulation of T-cells by antigen presenting cells (APCs). Furthermore, an accumulation of APCs was observed in peripheral lymphoid organs of older mice, possibly a result of reduced apoptosis. However, in vitro the differentiation of bone marrow cells into APCs was only marginally impaired. Therefore, at various stages of the differentiation of APCs cFLIPS might have different activities.
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The activation of death receptors (DR) can modulate differentiation and survival of cells through specialized intracellular signalling pathways. In cells of the immune system the relevance of this process is still controversial. This study investigated the characterization of a transgenic mouse that expresses under control of the vav promotor in hematopoietic cells a fusion gene containing cFLIPS, an inhibitor of DR induced apoptosis, and the green fluorescent protein (GFP). The expression of th...
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