The Role of Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells (pDCs) in Murine Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (MAIDS)
| dc.contributor | Fink, Rachel | |
| dc.contributor | Douglas, Amber | |
| dc.contributor.advisor | Stranford, Sharon | |
| dc.contributor.author | Zimmermann, Barret | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2011-05-20T17:37:33Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2011-05-20T17:37:33Z | |
| dc.date.gradyear | 2011 | en_US |
| dc.date.issued | 2011-05-20 | |
| dc.description.abstract | Murine AIDS is an animal model used to study human AIDS. Infection of susceptible strains of mice such as C57BL/6 with murine leukemia virus (MuLV) leads to MAIDS in a manner analogous to HIV-induced AIDS. Conversely, MAIDS resistant strains like BALB/c generate a successful immune defense against the virus after infection. Dendritic cells (DCs) play the largest role in viral particle processing and activation of naïve T cells, which elicit immune responses that can eradicate HIV or MuLV infection. The few published studies that have examined the role of a specific DC subset, plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), in AIDS, express opposing views; some argue that pDCs inhibit HIV spread, while others argue pDCs promote it. We used flow cytometry to compare pDC percentages in the spleens of BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice one week post-infection. Firstly, we identified a larger pDC (CD317+ and CD45R+) population in the susceptible strain after infection; this difference was statistically significant (p <.0001). These findings suggested that pDCs may be associated with disease vulnerability. Secondly, phenotypic differences were observed between strains, suggesting that these cell populations may be distinct. Nevertheless, the observed strain-specific differences in CD317+CD45+ population might influence disease susceptibility in MAIDS, and correspondingly could influence our understanding of human AIDS-susceptibility. | en_US |
| dc.description.sponsorship | Biological Sciences | en_US |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://hdl.handle.net/10166/866 | |
| dc.language.iso | en_US | en_US |
| dc.rights | Attribution 3.0 Unported | |
| dc.rights.restricted | public | |
| dc.rights.uri | http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ | |
| dc.subject | plasmacytoid dendritic cells | en_US |
| dc.subject | flow cytometry | en_US |
| dc.subject | murine acquired immunodeficiency syndrome | en_US |
| dc.title | The Role of Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells (pDCs) in Murine Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (MAIDS) | en_US |
| dc.type | Thesis | en_US |
| mhc.degree | Undergraduate | en_US |
| mhc.institution | Mount Holyoke College |