Low-dose IL2-based Immunomodulatory therapy for Stroke

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): It has been recently shown that CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes are critically involved in the collateral brain injury and neurological deficit associated with experimental stroke. Naturally occurring CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ (nTreg) cells derived from thymus play a key role in modulating the function of effector T cells and antigen- presenting cells that maintain self tolerance and immunological homeostasis. In the experimental models of stroke, deletion of nTreg cells profoundly increased delayed brain damage and deteriorated functional outcome in mice. Conversely, administration of nTreg cells resulted in a marked reduction of brain infarct and improvement of neurological functions while attenuating blood-brain barrier disruption with therapeutic window of at least 24 h. Remarkably, nTreg cell treatment corrected poststroke lymphopenia and decreased bacterial loads in the blood during recovery. Hence, nTreg cells represent a potentially safe and powerful approach for stroke the