Heat shock protein-antigen presenting cell interactions.

The heat shock protein-antigen presenting cell interaction lies at the center of the unique properties of heat shock proteins as immunogens. This interaction is a key event in adaptive immune response elicited by heat shock protein-chaperoned peptides, naturally derived or artificially reconstituted. The heat shock protein-antigen presenting cell interaction results in a primitive and fundamental chain of events, i.e., translocation of the NF-kappaB complex into the nuclei of antigen presenting cells, leading to a chain of transcriptional events including secretion of cytokines and expression of various antigen presenting and co-stimulatory molecules. The heat shock protein-antigen presenting cell interaction thus results in enrollment of not only the adaptive but also the innate component of the immune response. Here, we discuss the different methods involved in the in vitro study, of heat shock protein-antigen presenting cell interactions.