Dendritic cells and follicular dendritic cells express a novel ligand for CD38 which influences their maturation and antibody responses

Abstract

CD38 is a cell surface molecule with ADP-ribosyl cyclase activity, which is predominantly expressed on lymphoid and myeloid cells. CD38 has a significant role in B-cell function as some anti-CD38 antibodies can deliver potent growth and differentiation signals, but the ligand that delivers this signal in mice is unknown. We used a chimeric protein of mouse CD38 and human immunogobulin G (IgG) (CD38-Ig) to identify a novel ligand for murine CD38 (CD38L) on networks of follicular dendritic cells (FDCs) as well as dendritic cells (DCs) in the spleen. Flow-cytometry found that all DC subsets expressed cytoplasmic CD38L but only fresh ex vivo CD11c+ CD11b- DCs had cell surface CD38L. Anti-CD38 an..