Background: CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) attenuate atherosclerosis, but their therapeutic application by adoptive transfer is limited by the need for their expansion in vitro and limited purity. Recently, an interleukin (IL)-2/anti-IL-2 neutralizing monoclonal antibody (IL-2/anti-IL-2 mAb) complex has been shown to expand these Tregs. We examined the capacity of a modified IL-2/anti-IL-2 mAb treatment to expand Tregs and inhibit both the progression and development of developed atherosclerosis.
Methods and results: Six-week old apolipoprotein E-deficient mice fed a high-fat diet for 8 weeks were administered IL-2/anti-IL-2 mAb commencing 2 weeks after starting the diet. Tregs in the spleen, lymph node, and liver were selectively expanded without affecting CD4+, CD8+, or natural killer cells. Tregs were increased in lesions and lesion size reduced. CD4+ T-cells, macrophages, mature dendritic cells, proliferating cell nuclear antigen+ cells, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 were reduced. In anti-CD3-stimulated splenocytes, proliferation and secretion of Th1, Th2, and Th17 (IL-17) cytokines and IL-1β were reduced. To determine whether treatment attenuated progression of developed atherosclerosis, 6-week-old apolipoprotein E-deficient mice were fed a high-fat diet for 6 weeks, followed by IL-2/anti-IL-2 mAb treatment for 6 weeks while continuing the high-fat diet. Treatment also increased Tregs without affecting CD4+, CD8+, or natural killer cells, suppressed inflammation, and greatly attenuated progression of atherosclerosis.
Conclusions: IL-2/anti-IL-2 mAb treatment in vivo attenuates atherosclerosis via selective Tregs expansion. The findings suggest that cytokine-based IL-2/anti-IL-2 mAb complex therapy could represent an attractive approach for treating atherosclerosis, because it markedly attenuates progression as well as development, by modulating its immunoinflammatory component.