IMMUNOBIOLOGY CCR7 is involved in the migration of neutrophils to lymph nodes

Increasing evidence suggests that neutro-phils may participate in the regulation of adaptive immune responses, and can reach draining lymph nodes and cross-prime naive T cells. The aim of this study was to identify the mechanism(s) in-volved in the migration of neutrophils to the draining lymph nodes. We demon-strate that a subpopulation of human and mouse neutrophils express CCR7. CCR7 is rapidly expressed at the membrane upon stimulation. In vitro, stimulated hu-man neutrophils migrate in response to the CCR7 ligands CCL19 and CCL21. In vivo, injection of complete Freund adju-vant induces a rapid recruitment of neu-trophils to the lymph nodes in wild-type mice but not in Ccr7/ mice. Moreover, intradermally injected interleukin-17– and granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor–stimulated neutrophils from wild-type mice, but not from Ccr7/ mice, migrate to the draining lymph nodes. These results identify CCR7 as a chemokine receptor involved in the migra-tion of neutrophils to the lymph nodes. (Blood. 2011;117(4):1196-1204