Leishmania priming of human dendritic cells for CD40 ligand-induced interleukin-12p70 secretion is strain and species dependent.

A major question in the study of leishmaniasis is what dictates clinical disease expression produced by different Leishmania species, i.e., cutaneous versus systemic and healing versus nonhealing. Animal models using a Leishmania species associated with self-limiting cutaneous disease (L. major) have revealed that protective immunity requires CD40/CD40 ligand (CD40L)-dependent, interleukin-12 (IL-12)-driven Th1 responses. We recently showed that L. major can prime human dendritic cells (DCs) for CD40L-triggered IL-12p70 secretion and that these cells can drive a Th1 response in autologous T cells from sensitized individuals. Here we show that in contrast to L. major, Leishmania species responsible for visceral disease (L. donovani), as well as species associated with persistent, cutaneous lesions and occasional systemic disease (L. tropica), did not induce CD40L-dependent IL-12p70 production, despite comparable levels of uptake by DCs. Up-regulated surface expression of CD40 did not correlate with IL-12p70 production, and appreciable CD40L-induced IL-12p40 secretion was observed in uninfected as well as infected DCs, regardless of species. Reverse transcription-PCR analysis confirmed that the production of heterodimeric IL-12 was limited by expression of IL-12p35 mRNA, which was dependent on both a microbial priming signal and CD40 engagement for its high-level induction. The intrinsic differences in the ability of Leishmania species to prime DCs for CD40L-dependent IL-12p70 secretion may account, at least in part, for the evolution of healing and nonhealing forms of leishmanial disease.