Definition of target antigens for naturally occurring CD4⁺ CD25⁺ regulatory T cells

The antigenic targets recognized by naturally occurring CD4⁺ CD25⁺ regulatory T cells (T reg cells) have been elusive. We have serologically defined a series of broadly expressed self-antigens derived from chemically induced mouse sarcomas by serological identification of antigens by recombinant expression cloning (SEREX). CD4⁺ CD25⁺ T cells from mice immunized with SEREX-defined self-antigens had strong suppressive activity on peptide-specific proliferation of CD4⁺ CD25⁻ T cells and CD8⁺ T cells. The suppressive effect was observed without in vitro T cell stimulation. Foxp3 expression in these CD4⁺ CD25⁺ T cells from immunized mice was 5–10 times greater than CD4⁺ CD25⁺ T cells derived from naive mice. The suppressive effect required cellular contact and was blocked by anti-glucocorticoid–induced tumor necrosis factor receptor family–related gene antibody. In vitro suppressive activity essentially disappeared 8 wk after the last immunization. However, it was regained by in vitro restimulation with cognate self-antigen protein but not with control protein. We propose that SEREX-defined self-antigens such as those used in this study represent self-antigens that elicit naturally occurring CD4⁺ CD25⁺ T reg cells.