Cytokine production in T lymphocyte-microglia interaction is attenuated by glatiramer acetate: a mechanism for therapeutic efficacy in multiple sclerosis

The efficacy of glatiramer acetate in multiple sclerosis (MS) is thought to involve the production of Th2 regulatory lymphocytes that secrete anti-inflammatory cytokines, however, other mechanisms cannot be excluded. Given that activated T lymphocytes infiltrate into the CNS and become in close proximity to microglia, we evaluated whether glatiramer acetate affects the potential interaction between T cells and microglia. We report that the co-culture of activated T lymphocytes with microglia led to the induction of several cytokines, and that these were reduced by glatiramer acetate treatment. Morphological transformation of bipolar/ramified microglia into an activated ameboid form was attenuated by glatiramer acetate. These results reveal a novel mechanism for glatiramer acetate: the impairment of activated T cells to effectively interact with microglia to produce cytokines. The net result of a non-inflammatory milieu within the CNS, in spite of T cell infiltration, may help account for the amelioration of disease activity in MS patients on glatiramer acetate therapy.