Figure 3

MSCs inhibit the activation and the proliferation of Th1 and Th17 cells. A) MSCs inhibit the expression of CD25 in the early stage of activation of Th1 and Th17 cells. T cell activation was measured using purified CD4⁺ T cells differentiated into Th1 or Th17 cells in the presence or absence of MSCs according to the expression of the activation surface antigen CD25 (left: representative dot plot: 1:10 upper panels and 1:100 lower panels). B) MSCs suppress Th1 and Th17 cells independent of the stage of activation and cell ratio. Relative cell quantification was determined using purified CD4⁺ T cells differentiated into Th1 or Th17 cells in the presence or absence of MSCs added at day 0, 2 or 4 after T cell activation and at a MSCs:Th ratio (1:10 and 1:100), using the Cell Titer Glo™ luminescence assay. RLU = relative light units. MSCs, mesenchymal stem cells; Th, T helper.