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Letters to Nature

Nature 409, 102-105 (4 January 2001) | doi:10.1038/35051107; Received 12 September 2000; Accepted 7 November 2000

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ICOS is critical for CD40-mediated antibody class switching

Alexander J. McAdam1, Rebecca J. Greenwald1, Michele A. Levin1, Tatyana Chernova2, Nelly Malenkovich2, Vincent Ling3, Gordon J. Freeman2,4 & Arlene H. Sharpe1,4

  1. Departments of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 221 Longwood Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
  2. Department of Adult Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
  3. Department of Immunology, Genetics Institute, 87 CambridgePark Drive, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02081, USA
  4. These authors contributed equally to this work

Correspondence to: Arlene H. Sharpe1,4 Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to A.H.S. (e-mail: Email: asharpe@rics.bwh.harvard.edu).

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The inducible co-stimulatory molecule (ICOS) is a CD28 homologue implicated in regulating T-cell differentiation1, 2, 3, 4, 5. Because co-stimulatory signals are critical for regulating T-cell activation, an understanding of co-stimulatory signals may enable the design of rational therapies for immune-mediated diseases6. According to the two-signal model for T-cell activation, T cells require an antigen-specific signal and a second, co-stimulatory, signal for optimal T-cell activation6. The co-stimulatory signal promotes T-cell proliferation, lymphokine secretion and effector function. The B7–CD28 pathway provides essential signals for T-cell activation, but does not account for all co-stimulation. We have generated mice lacking ICOS (ICOS-/- ) to determine the essential functions of ICOS. Here we report that ICOS-/- mice exhibit profound deficits in immunoglobulin isotype class switching, accompanied by impaired germinal centre formation. Class switching was restored in ICOS-/- mice by CD40 stimulation, showing that ICOS promotes T-cell/B-cell collaboration through the CD40/CD40L pathway.

  1. Departments of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, 221 Longwood Avenue, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
  2. Department of Adult Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA
  3. Department of Immunology, Genetics Institute, 87 CambridgePark Drive, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02081, USA
  4. These authors contributed equally to this work

Correspondence to: Arlene H. Sharpe1,4 Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to A.H.S. (e-mail: Email: asharpe@rics.bwh.harvard.edu).