iAstrocytes do not restrain T cell proliferation in vitro

The cross-talk between T cells and astrocytes occurring under physiological and, even more, neuroinflammatory conditions may profoundly impact the generation of adaptive immune responses in the nervous tissue. In this study, we used a standardized in vitro co-culture assay to investigate the immunomodulatory properties of astrocytes differing for age, sex, and species. Mouse neonatal astrocytes enhanced T cell vitality but suppressed T lymphocyte proliferation in response to mitogenic stimuli or myelin antigens, regardless of the Th1, Th2 or Th17 T cell phenotype. Studies comparing glia cells from adult and neonatal animals showed that adult astrocytes were more efficient in inhibiting T lymphocyte activation than neonatal astrocytes, regardless of their sex. Differently from primary cultures, mouse and human astrocytes derived from reprogrammed fibroblasts did not interfere with T cell proliferation. Overall, we describe a standardized astrocyte-T cell interaction in vitro assay and demonstrate that primary astrocytes and iAstrocytes may differ in modulating T cell function.