Abstract
CD4(+) CD45RB(hi) CD25(-) effector T cells (T(E)) promote Helicobacter pylori gastritis in mice, and CD4(+) CD45RB(lo) CD25(+) regulatory T cells (T(R)) are anti-inflammatory. Using adoptive transfer into H. pylori-infected Rag2(-/-) mice, we evaluated effects of wild-type (wt) C57BL/6 or congenic interleukin-10-deficient (IL-10(-/-)) T(R) cells on gastritis, gastric cytokines, and H. pylori colonization. Infected Rag2(-/-) mice colonized in the corpus and antrum with 10(5) to 10(6) H. pylori CFU/gram without associated gastritis. T(E) cell transfer caused morbidity and an H. pylori-independent pangastritis and duodenitis (gastroduodenitis) associated with increased expression of gamma interferon (IFN-gamma) and tumor necrosis factor alpha. T(E) cell transfer to H. pylori-infected mice led to additive corpus gastritis associated with inflammatory cytokine expression and reduced colonization. wt T(R) cells reduced morbidity, H. pylori corpus gastritis, gastroduodenitis, and inflammatory cytokine expression and reversed the decline in H. pylori colonization attributable to T(E) cells. Although less effective than wt T(R) cells, IL-10(-/-) T(R) cells also reduced morbidity and gastroduodenitis but did not reduce H. pylori corpus gastritis or impact T(E) cell inhibition of colonization. Gastric tissues from mice receiving wt T(R) cells expressed higher levels of Foxp3 compared to recipients of IL-10(-/-) T(R) cells, consistent with lower regulatory activity of IL-10(-/-) T(R) cells. These results demonstrate that wt T(R) cells suppressed T(E)-cell-mediated H. pylori-independent gastroduodenitis and H. pylori-dependent corpus gastritis more effectively than IL-10(-/-) T(R) cells. Compartmental differences in T(E)-cell- and H. pylori-mediated inflammation and in regulatory effects between wt T(R) and IL-10(-/-) T(R) cells suggest that IL-10 expression by wt T(R) cells is important to regulatory suppression of gastric inflammation.