Jagged-1 regulates <i>Foxp3</i> expression and cytokine production in CD4⁺ T cells

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title><jats:p>Notch ligands are present during the interactions between T cells and dendritic cells (DC) and induce a myriad of effects that facilitate the activation of T cells, including the induction of T cell regulation, survival, and cytokine production. Although the ligands Delta-like 4 and Delta-like 1 are expressed as a function of DC activation, the notch ligand Jagged-1 is constitutively expressed on DC. We sought to determine the role of Jagged-1 in the interactions between CD4<jats:sup>+</jats:sup> T cells and DC. We observed that Jagged-1 regulates Foxp3 expression, and <jats:italic>Cd11c</jats:italic><jats:sup><jats:italic>Cre+</jats:italic></jats:sup><jats:italic>Jagged</jats:italic><jats:sup><jats:italic>ff</jats:italic></jats:sup> mice have an altered expression of Foxp3 in effector cells that arise as a result of infection with the mycobacterium <jats:italic>Bacille Calmette-Guerin</jats:italic>. The observed changes in <jats:italic>Foxp3</jats:italic> expression were correlated with an increase in cytokine production from cultures of antigen-stimulated draining lymph nodes.</jats:p>