Sporothrix schenckii Cell Wall Proteins-Stimulated BMDCs Are Able to Induce a Th1-Prone Cytokine Profile In Vitro

Sporotrichosis is a subcutaneous mycosis affecting humans and other animals. The disease can be acquired by accidental inoculation of the fungus through the skin or through the respiratory system. Sporotrichosis can also be transmitted through bites or scratches by infected cats and more rarely by other animals (zoonotic transmission). Conventional antifungal therapy is especially inefficient in immunocompromised patients, who tend to develop the most severe forms of the disease, thus prompting the search for alternative therapies. Given their antigen-presenting properties, dendritic cells (DCs) have been used in both prophylactic and therapeutic vaccination strategies. Hence, this study aims to assess the use of DCs as a prophylactic tool in sporotrichosis by evaluating the immune profile induced by Sporothrix schenckii cell wall proteins (SsCWP)-stimulated, bone-marrow-derived DCs (BMDCs). Mouse BMDCs were stimulated with SsCWP for 24 h and analyzed for the surface expression of costimulatory molecules and TLR-4, as well as for the secretion of proinflammatory cytokines and IL-10. Following that, activated BMDCs were cocultured with splenocytes for 72 h and had the same cytokines measured in the supernatant. SsCWP-stimulated BMDCs showed higher expression of CD80, CD86, and CD40, but not TLR-4, and higher secretion of IL-6, IL-17A, and TNF. On the other hand, higher levels of IFN-γ, IL-10, and IL-2 were found in the supernatants of the coculture as compared with the BMDCs alone; TNF secretion was almost completely abrogated, whereas IL-6 was only partially inhibited and IL-17A was unaffected. Our results thus suggest that SsCWP-stimulated BMDCs are able to induce a Th1-prone cytokine profile which is known to be protective against other fungal diseases. This result could lead to studies which evaluate the development of prophylactic and/or therapeutic DC-based tools against sporotrichosis.