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Chemokines have been hypothesized to contribute to the selectivity of lymphocyte trafficking not only as chemoattractants, but also by triggering integrin-dependent sticking (arrest) of circulating lymphocytes at venular sites of extravasation. We show that T cells roll on most Peyer's patch high endothelial venules (PP-HEVs), but preferentially arrest in segments displaying high levels of luminal secondary lymphoid tissue chemokine (SLC) (6Ckine, Exodus-2, thymus-derived chemotactic agent 4 TCA-4). This arrest is selectively inhibited by functional deletion (desensitization) of CC chemokine receptor 7 (CCR7), the receptor for SLC and for macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-3beta (EBV-induced molecule 1 ligand chemokine ELC), and does not occur in mutant DDD/1 mice that are deficient in these CCR7 ligands. In contrast, pertussis toxin-sensitive B cell sticking does not require SLC or MIP-3beta signaling, and occurs efficiently in SLC(low/-) HEV segments in wild-type mice, and in the SLC-negative HEVs of DDD/1 mice. Remarkably, sites of T and B cell firm adhesion are segregated in PPs, with HEVs supporting B cell accumulation concentrated in or near follicles, the target domain of most B cells entering PPs, whereas T cells preferentially accumulate in interfollicular HEVs. Our findings reveal a fundamental difference in signaling requirements for PP-HEV recognition by T and B cells, and describe an unexpected level of specialization of HEVs that may allow differential, segmental control of lymphocyte subset recruitment into functionally distinct lymphoid microenvironments in vivo.
Warnock et al. (Mon,) studied this question.