Defective Central Tolerance in Aire‐Deficient Mice is not Sufficient to Induce Symptomatic Autoimmunity During Lymphopenia‐Induced T cell Proliferation

Transcriptional regulator autoimmune regulator (AIRE) controls thymic negative selection but it is also expressed in secondary lymphoid organs. The relative contribution of AIRE’s central and peripheral function to the maintenance of tolerance is unclear. We transferred mature lymphocytes from Aire−/− or wild‐type donors to Aire+/+ lymphopenic recipients, which allowed us to gauge the autoreactivity inherent in the cells originating in an Aire−/− thymus. In the ensuing lymphopenia‐induced proliferation (LIP), the recipients of cells from Aire−/− showed definite T cell hyperproliferation and developed autoantibodies at a higher frequency than the recipients of wild‐type cells. However, neither of the recipient groups developed clinical symptoms, and pathological tissue infiltrates were also absent. The recipients of Aire−/− cells showed hyperproliferation and increased accumulation of regulatory T cells (Tregs), especially in tissues susceptible to inflammation triggered by LIP. These data are consistent with the view that T cells developing in the absence of Aire are autoreactive. However, overt autoimmunity was prevented, most likely by the suppressive function of Treg cells in the Aire‐sufficient recipients. Our results support the importance of the peripheral AIRE expression in the maintenance of immunological tolerance.