Inhibitors of serotonin synthesis and antagonists of serotonin 1A receptors inhibit T lymphocyte function in vitro and cell-mediated immunity in vivo.

The serotonin (5HT1A) receptor subtype is one member of the 5HT1 receptor family and is constitutively expressed on Jurkat cells and is elevated on human T lymphocytes after mitogenic activation. Published reports show that human T lymphocytes and monocytes also release 5HT after stimulation with PHA or IFN-gamma. In lymphocytes and the central nervous system, the 5HT1A receptor is coupled to regulation of adenylate cyclase. The 5HT1A receptor agonists inhibit activation of adenylate cyclase. The purpose of the experiments reported here was to investigate further the role 5HT and the 5HT1A receptor may play in the regulation of human and murine T cell activity. For this purpose, human PBMC or murine spleen cells were used for experimental purposes rather than Jurkat cells. The results show that inhibition of 5HT synthesis inhibits IL-2-stimulated human T cell proliferation and that addition of 5-hydroxytryptophan, a precursor of 5HT, reverses inhibition of T cell proliferation. The 5HT1 receptor antagonist, metitepine, and the 5HT1A selective antagonist, pindobind-5HT1A, also block T cell proliferation. Inhibition by metitepine is reversed by 5HT and by the selective 5HT1A receptor agonist, 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino) (8-OH-DPAT). Selective 5HT1A receptor antagonists cause elevation of cAMP in human T cells. In a murine model, selective 5HT1A receptor antagonists inhibit contact sensitivity responses but not Ab responses to oxazalone in vivo. Inhibition is reversed by 8-OH-DPAT. In addition, production of Th1 cytokines, such as IL-2 and IFN-gamma, by Ag-stimulated, immune murine spleen cells is inhibited by 5HT1A receptor antagonists in vitro but not by 5HT1C/2 receptor antagonists.