ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human Atherosclerosis

Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory condition of the arterial wall that leads to the formation of vessel-occluding plaques within the subintimal space of middle-sized and larger arteries. While traditionally understood as a myeloid-driven lipid-storage disease, growing evidence suggests that t...

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Main Authors: Timoteo Marchini, Sophie Hansen, Dennis Wolf
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-02-01
Series:Cells
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/10/2/446
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author Timoteo Marchini
Sophie Hansen
Dennis Wolf
author_facet Timoteo Marchini
Sophie Hansen
Dennis Wolf
author_sort Timoteo Marchini
collection DOAJ
description Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory condition of the arterial wall that leads to the formation of vessel-occluding plaques within the subintimal space of middle-sized and larger arteries. While traditionally understood as a myeloid-driven lipid-storage disease, growing evidence suggests that the accumulation of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ignites an autoimmune response with CD4<sup>+</sup> T-helper (T<sub>H</sub>) cells that recognize self-peptides from Apolipoprotein B (ApoB), the core protein of LDL-C. These autoreactive CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells home to the atherosclerotic plaque, clonally expand, instruct other cells in the plaque, and induce clinical plaque instability. Recent developments in detecting antigen-specific cells at the single cell level have demonstrated that ApoB-reactive CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells exist in humans and mice. Their phenotypes and functions deviate from classical immunological concepts of distinct and terminally differentiated T<sub>H</sub> immunity. Instead, ApoB-specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells have a highly plastic phenotype, can acquire several, partially opposing and mixed transcriptional programs simultaneously, and transit from one T<sub>H</sub> subset into another over time. In this review, we highlight adaptive immune mechanisms in atherosclerosis with a focus on CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells, introduce novel technologies to detect ApoB-specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells at the single cell level, and discuss the potential impact of ApoB-driven autoimmunity in atherosclerosis.
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spelling doaj.art-b1c389e083a64943846bc734364d01b12023-12-11T17:40:15ZengMDPI AGCells2073-44092021-02-0110244610.3390/cells10020446ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human AtherosclerosisTimoteo Marchini0Sophie Hansen1Dennis Wolf2Department of Cardiology and Angiology I, University Heart Center Freiburg, Hugstetterstraße 55, 79106 Freiburg, GermanyDepartment of Cardiology and Angiology I, University Heart Center Freiburg, Hugstetterstraße 55, 79106 Freiburg, GermanyDepartment of Cardiology and Angiology I, University Heart Center Freiburg, Hugstetterstraße 55, 79106 Freiburg, GermanyAtherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory condition of the arterial wall that leads to the formation of vessel-occluding plaques within the subintimal space of middle-sized and larger arteries. While traditionally understood as a myeloid-driven lipid-storage disease, growing evidence suggests that the accumulation of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) ignites an autoimmune response with CD4<sup>+</sup> T-helper (T<sub>H</sub>) cells that recognize self-peptides from Apolipoprotein B (ApoB), the core protein of LDL-C. These autoreactive CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells home to the atherosclerotic plaque, clonally expand, instruct other cells in the plaque, and induce clinical plaque instability. Recent developments in detecting antigen-specific cells at the single cell level have demonstrated that ApoB-reactive CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells exist in humans and mice. Their phenotypes and functions deviate from classical immunological concepts of distinct and terminally differentiated T<sub>H</sub> immunity. Instead, ApoB-specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells have a highly plastic phenotype, can acquire several, partially opposing and mixed transcriptional programs simultaneously, and transit from one T<sub>H</sub> subset into another over time. In this review, we highlight adaptive immune mechanisms in atherosclerosis with a focus on CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells, introduce novel technologies to detect ApoB-specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T cells at the single cell level, and discuss the potential impact of ApoB-driven autoimmunity in atherosclerosis.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/10/2/446atherosclerosisimmunityautoimmunityapolipoprotein BLDLT cells
spellingShingle Timoteo Marchini
Sophie Hansen
Dennis Wolf
ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human Atherosclerosis
Cells
atherosclerosis
immunity
autoimmunity
apolipoprotein B
LDL
T cells
title ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human Atherosclerosis
title_full ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human Atherosclerosis
title_fullStr ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human Atherosclerosis
title_full_unstemmed ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human Atherosclerosis
title_short ApoB-Specific CD4<sup>+</sup> T Cells in Mouse and Human Atherosclerosis
title_sort apob specific cd4 sup sup t cells in mouse and human atherosclerosis
topic atherosclerosis
immunity
autoimmunity
apolipoprotein B
LDL
T cells
url https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4409/10/2/446
work_keys_str_mv AT timoteomarchini apobspecificcd4supsuptcellsinmouseandhumanatherosclerosis
AT sophiehansen apobspecificcd4supsuptcellsinmouseandhumanatherosclerosis
AT denniswolf apobspecificcd4supsuptcellsinmouseandhumanatherosclerosis