Systemic delivery of G-1 drove IL-10 production from splenocytes following T-cell activation in culture. It is notable that this effect does not require overt in vivo antigen recognition. This result may reflect that G-1-mediated signalling in naive T cells leads to an alteration

in their resting state, perhaps through transcriptional mechanisms. Another possibility is that there is carryover of G-1 during purification of splenocytes before culture, where antigen presentation is mimicked using stimulatory antibodies, or that the effects are the result of the low levels of T-cell activation inherent in naive mice. Along those lines, we have consistently found a small population of memory cells within the spleen of untreated mice, suggesting low levels BMN 673 mouse of immune activation in ‘naive’ animals (data not shown). It is also possible Erismodegib order that pre-existing

memory T cells are responsible for G-1’s effect in this setting, as G-1 can drive IL-10 secretion from this population (unpublished observation). In agreement with our observations from cultured T cells (Fig. 2), systemic administration of G-1 had no effect on IL-6 or TNF-α secretion. Conversely, we did detect increased secretion of IL-17A following in vivo treatment with G-1, while also observing a decrease in the production of IFN-γ. These differences from results with purified T-cell cultures may reflect the effects of G-1 on other immune populations following in vivo treatment. Such populations may also be contributing to the observed IL-10 secretion, directly or indirectly. Another possibility includes G-1-mediated IL-10 production during the week-long injections of G-1, leading to inactivation of splenic APCs and a decrease in the secretion of Th1-polarizing cytokines like IL-12, and hence to lower IFN-γ production. Th17 cells are localized in high numbers to sites of autoimmune inflammation. Our data suggest that it may be possible to induce IL-10 in situ where large

numbers of Th17 cells persist, through systemic treatment with G-1. The feasibility of this therapeutic approach is suggested by experiments in which IL-10+ Th17 cells differentiated with TGF-β and IL-6 Monoiodotyrosine alone inhibited the development of EAE following adoptive transfer of neuropeptide-reactive Th17 cells.19 This effect was dependent on IL-10 production19 and suggests that such cells can inhibit fully differentiated pathogenic T-cell populations through the secretion of IL-10 in situ, as would likely be required in the case of a viable therapeutic intervention based on the results of our study. While our finding that systemic G-1 could increase IL-17A secretion from murine splenocytes warrants further attention, it must be noted that IL-17A has been shown to exhibit immunosuppressive properties in several settings, including in the development of atherosclerosis43–45 and the induction of T-cell-mediated colitis.