T Cells Which Do Not Express Membrane Tumor Necrosis Factor‐α Activate Macrophage Effector Function by Cell Contact‐dependent Signaling of Macrophage Tumor Necrosis Factor‐α Production

Previous studies have suggested that T cell contact‐dependent signaling of macrophages (MΦ) is mediated by membrane tumor necrosis factor‐α (memTNF‐α), based on the observation that anti‐TNF‐α could inhibit T cell‐mediated MΦ activation. The current report confirms that anti‐TNF‐α does inhibit activation of interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ)‐primed MΦ by paraformaldehyde‐fixed activated T cells. However, the involvement of membrane molecules other than memTNF‐α in the contact‐dependent signaling is suggested by two lines of evidence. First, the TH2 clone, AK8, displayed neither secreted TNF‐α/β nor memTNF‐α/β detectable by bioassay or immunofluorescence. Nonetheless, AK8 cells were equally effective, on a per cell basis, in contact‐dependent signaling of MΦ activation as TH2 and TH1 cells which do express memTNF‐α. Second, the expression of memTNF‐α by the TH clone, D10.G4, is maximal 24 h after activation, whereas the ability of this clone to activate MΦ is maximal at 6–8 h of activation and declines thereafter. Since TNF‐α is known to play a critical role in activation of MΦ effector function, it was hypothesized that T cell membrane components other than memTNF‐α might signal MΦ production of TNF‐α, thus allowing autocrine TNF‐α stimulation of MΦ effector function. In support of this, it is demonstrated that paraformaldehyde‐fixed activated TH2 cells can induce de novo production and release of TNF‐α by MΦ. This effect was not an artifactual result of paraformaldehyde fixation since paraformaldehyde‐fixed resting T cells did not induce TNF‐α gene expression. Previous studies have demonstrated a role for autocrine TNF‐α stimulation in LPS induction of effector function in recombinant IFN‐γ‐primed MΦ. The current study confirms that TNF‐α plays a critical role in T cell contact‐dependent signaling of MΦ but indicates that memTNF on the T cells may not be a sine qua non factor for contact‐dependent signaling. The data suggest that other T cell membrane molecules contribute to activation of MΦ effector function by stimulation of MΦ TNF‐α production