AUTHOR=Mohamud Rohimah , LeMasurier Jeanne S. , Boer Jennifer C. , Sieow Je Lin , Rolland Jennifer M. , O’Hehir Robyn E. , Hardy Charles L. , Plebanski Magdalena TITLE=Synthetic Nanoparticles That Promote Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor 2 Expressing Regulatory T Cells in the Lung and Resistance to Allergic Airways Inflammation JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology VOLUME=8 YEAR=2017 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2017.01812 DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2017.01812 ISSN=1664-3224 ABSTRACT=

Synthetic glycine coated 50 nm polystyrene nanoparticles (NP) (PS50G), unlike ambient NP, do not promote pulmonary inflammation, but instead, render lungs resistant to the development of allergic airway inflammation. In this study, we show that PS50G modulate the frequency and phenotype of regulatory T cells (Treg) in the lung, specifically increasing the proportion of tumor necrosis factor 2 (TNFR2) expressing Treg. Mice pre-exposed to PS50G, which were sensitized and then challenged with an allergen a month later, preferentially expanded TNFR2+Foxp3+ Treg, which further expressed enhanced levels of latency associated peptide and cytotoxic T-lymphocyte associated molecule-4. Moreover, PS50G-induced CD103+ dendritic cell activation in the lung was associated with the proliferative expansion of TNFR2+Foxp3+ Treg. These findings provide the first evidence that engineered NP can promote the selective expansion of maximally suppressing TNFR2+Foxp3+ Treg and further suggest a novel mechanism by which NP may promote healthy lung homeostasis.