Abstract
INTRODUCTION: R-Ras GTPase has recently been implicated in the regulation of immune functions, particularly in dendritic cell (DC) maturation, immune synapse formation, and subsequent T cell responses. METHODS: Here, we investigated the role of R-Ras in allergen-induced immune response (type 2 immune response) in Rras deficient (R-Ras KO) and wild type (WT) mice. RESULTS: Initially, we found that the number of conventional DC's in the lymph nodes (LNs) was reduced in R-Ras KO mice. The expression of co-stimulatory CD80 and CD86 molecules on these cells was also reduced on DC's from the R-Ras KO mice. However, there was no difference in papain-induced immune response between the R-Ras WT and KO as measured by serum IgE levels after the immunization. Interestingly, neither the DC number nor co-stimulatory molecule expression was different between WT and R-Ras KO animals after the immunization. CONCLUSIONS: Taken together, despite having reduced number of conventional DC's in the R-Ras KO mice and low expression of CD80 on DC's, the R-Ras KO mice are capable of mounting papain-induced IgE responses comparable to that of the WT mice. To our knowledge, this is the first report addressing potential differences in in vivo allergen responses regulated by the R-Ras GTPase.