A variety of immunostimulatory agents can have unexpected adverse consequences, such as the development ofautoimmune disease or the inmduction of tolerance. We examined the mechanisms responsible for the induction of these adverse consequences. Studies were designed to examine the immunostimulatory cascade initiated by protein antigens (including vaccines) and immunostimulatory CpG motifs present in DNA vaccines on the immune milieu, and whether they predisposed to the development of autoimmunity or tolerance. Our experiments show that agents capable of altering the balance between Th1 and Th2 cytokines profoundly impact the initiation, severity and persistence of both systemic and organ specific autoimmunity. The capacity of gp120-based vaccines and other protein-based immunogens to alter the cytokine milieu and thus contribute to the appearance of lupus-like symptoms was analyzed. We also showed (using an EAE model) that the administration of synthetic oligos expression CpG motifs predisposed to the development of organ specific autoimmunity (thourgh a Th1-mediated, IL-12 dependent process). In research funded by the Office of Women's Heath, we examined the contribution of sex hormones (and agents that modify sex hormone levels) to the creation of an immune milieu conducive to the development of autoimmunity. Current findings suggest that hormones (such as estrogen) induce the activation of Th2 cytokines, thus skewing the Th2 : Th1 ratio to favor the development of systemic autoimmune disease. Our most recent studies examine the ability of DNA vaccines to induce neonatal tolerance. We established the role of immature antigen presenting cells in this process, and showed that the co-administration of a plasmid encoding GM-CSF interferred with the developmetn of tolerance. In studies of the adjuvant-like properties of CpG motifs, we found that such motifs could promote the development of humoral and cell-mediated immunity against the proteins and DNA vaccines with which they were co-delivered.
