Interleukin-12 secreted by mature dendritic cells mediates activation of NK cell function.

Dendritic cells (DCs) are known to modulate immune response by activating effector cells of both the innate and the adaptive immune system. In the present study, we demonstrate that co-culture of DCs with paraformaldehyde-fixed tumor cells augments the secretion of interleukin (IL)-12 by DCs and these activated DCs upon co-culture with naive NK cells enhance the cytolytic activity of NK cells against NK-sensitive target YAC-1. Similarly, DCs isolated from tumor-bearing animals also activated NK cells in vitro. For efficient activation of NK cells, the ratio of activated DCs to NK cells is crucial. Addition of anti-IL-12 antibody to the culture system completely abolished activation of NK cells by DCs, suggesting that IL-12 secreted by DCs is an essential factor in NK cell activation. Adoptive transfer of DCs isolated from tumor-bearing animals into normal rats also induced activation of NK cells in normal animals.