CD36 is differentially expressed by CD8+ splenic dendritic cells but is not required for cross-presentation in vivo.

Cross-presentation allows the processing of Ags from donor cells into the MHC class I presentation pathway of dendritic cells (DCs). This is important for the generation of cytotoxic T cell immunity and for induction of self tolerance. Apoptotic cells are reported to be efficient targets for cross-presentation, and in vitro studies using human DCs have implicated CD36 in their capture. In support of a role for CD36 in cross-presentation, we show that this molecule is differentially expressed by CD8(+) splenic DCs, which previously have been identified as responsible for cross-presentation in the mouse. Three different cross-presentation models were examined for their dependence on CD36. These included cross-priming to OVA-coated spleen cells and cross-tolerance to OVA transgenically expressed in the pancreatic islet beta cells under constitutive conditions or during beta cell destruction. In these models, CD36 knockout DCs were equivalent to wild-type DCs in their capacity to cross-present either foreign or self Ags, indicating that CD36 is not essential for cross-presentation of cellular Ags in vivo.