scholarly journals Dysfunctional CD8+ T cells in hepatitis B and C are characterized by a lack of antigen-specific T-bet induction

2014 ◽  
Vol 211 (10) ◽  
pp. 2047-2059 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter D. Kurktschiev ◽  
Bijan Raziorrouh ◽  
Winfried Schraut ◽  
Markus Backmund ◽  
Martin Wächtler ◽  
...  

The transcription factor T-bet regulates the production of interferon-γ and cytotoxic molecules in effector CD8 T cells, and its expression correlates with improved control of chronic viral infections. However, the role of T-bet in infections with differential outcome remains poorly defined. Here, we report that high expression of T-bet in virus-specific CD8 T cells during acute hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was associated with spontaneous resolution, whereas T-bet deficiency was more characteristic of chronic evolving infection. T-bet strongly correlated with interferon-γ production and proliferation of virus-specific CD8 T cells, and its induction by antigen and IL-2 stimulation partially restored functionality in previously dysfunctional T-bet–deficient CD8 T cells. However, restoration of a strong interferon-γ response required additional stimulation with IL-12, which selectively induced the phosphorylation of STAT4 in T-bet+ CD8 T cells. The observation that T-bet expression rendered CD8 T cells responsive to IL-12 suggests a stepwise mechanism of T cell activation in which T-bet facilitates the recruitment of additional transcription factors in the presence of key cytokines. These findings support a critical role of T-bet for viral clearance and suggest T-bet deficiency as an important mechanism behind chronic infection.

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 37
Author(s):  
Sarah Schäfer ◽  
Alma Zernecke

Atherosclerotic lesions are populated by cells of the innate and adaptive immune system, including CD8+ T cells. The CD8+ T cell infiltrate has recently been characterized in mouse and human atherosclerosis and revealed activated, cytotoxic, and possibly dysfunctional and exhausted cell phenotypes. In mouse models of atherosclerosis, antibody-mediated depletion of CD8+ T cells ameliorates atherosclerosis. CD8+ T cells control monopoiesis and macrophage accumulation in early atherosclerosis. In addition, CD8+ T cells exert cytotoxic functions in atherosclerotic plaques and contribute to macrophage cell death and necrotic core formation. CD8+ T cell activation may be antigen-specific, and epitopes of atherosclerosis-relevant antigens may be targets of CD8+ T cells and their cytotoxic activity. CD8+ T cell functions are tightly controlled by costimulatory and coinhibitory immune checkpoints. Subsets of regulatory CD25+CD8+ T cells with immunosuppressive functions can inhibit atherosclerosis. Importantly, local cytotoxic CD8+ T cell responses may trigger endothelial damage and plaque erosion in acute coronary syndromes. Understanding the complex role of CD8+ T cells in atherosclerosis may pave the way for defining novel treatment approaches in atherosclerosis. In this review article, we discuss these aspects, highlighting the emerging and critical role of CD8+ T cells in atherosclerosis.


Blood ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 119 (1) ◽  
pp. 127-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Chen ◽  
Kumar Felix ◽  
Jin Wang

AbstractAfter stimulation of antigen-specific T cells, dendritic cell (DCs) are susceptible to killing by these activated T cells that involve perforin and Fas-dependent mechanisms. Fas-dependent DC apoptosis has been shown to limit DC accumulation and prevent the development of autoimmunity. However, a role for perforin in the maintenance of DC homeostasis for immune regulation remains to be determined. Here we show that perforin deficiency in mice, together with the deletion of Fas in DCs (perforin−/−DC-Fas−/−), led to DC accumulation, uncontrolled T-cell activation, and IFN-γ production by CD8+ T cells, resulting in the development of lethal hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. Consistently, adoptive transfer of Fas−/− DCs induced over-activation and IFN-γ production in perforin−/− CD8+ T cells. Neutralization of IFN-γ prevented the spreading of inflammatory responses to different cell types and protected the survival of perforin−/−DC-Fas−/− mice. Our data suggest that perforin and Fas synergize in the maintenance of DC homeostasis to limit T cell activation, and prevent the initiation of an inflammatory cascade.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dmytro Shytikov ◽  
Deepak Rohila ◽  
Dan Li ◽  
Pengfei Wang ◽  
Mei Jiang ◽  
...  

The role of Ly49+CD8 T-cells in the immune system is not clear. Previously, several papers suggested Ly49+CD8 T-cells as immunosuppressors, while multiple studies also suggested their role as potent participants of the immune response. The mechanism of Ly49 expression on CD8 T-cells is also not clear. We investigated phenotype, functions, and regulation of Ly49 expression on murine CD8 T-cells in both normal state and during LCMV infection. CD8 T-cells express different Ly49 receptors compared with NK-cells. In intact mice, Ly49+CD8 T-cells have a phenotype similar to resting central memory CD8 T-cells and do not show impaired proliferation and cytokine production. Conventional CD8 T-cells upregulate Ly49 receptors during TCR-induced stimulation, and IL-2, as well as IL-15, affect it. At the same time, Ly49+CD8 T-cells change the Ly49 expression profile dramatically upon re-stimulation downregulating inhibitory and upregulating activating Ly49 receptors. We observed the expression of Ly49 receptors on the virus-specific CD8 T-cells during LCMV infection, especially marked in the early stages, and participation of Ly49+CD8 T-cells in the anti-viral response. Thus, CD8 T-cells acquire Ly49 receptors during the T-cell activation and show dynamic regulation of Ly49 receptors during stimulation.


2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (4) ◽  
pp. 564-572 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anqun Chen ◽  
Kyung Lee ◽  
Tianjun Guan ◽  
John Cijiang He ◽  
Detlef Schlondorff

Abstract Crescentic glomerulonephritis (cGN) comprises three main types according to the pathogenesis and immunofluorescence patterns: anti-glomerular basement membrane antibody cGN, vasculitis-associated cGN and post-infectious immune complex cGN. In this brief review of the immune-pathogenesis of cGN, the focus is mainly on the role of CD8+ T cells in the progression of cGN. Under control conditions, Bowman’s capsule (BC) provides a protected immunological niche by preventing access of cytotoxic CD8+ T cells to Bowman’s space and thereby podocytes. Even in experimental nephrotoxic nephritis, leukocytes accumulate around the glomeruli, but remain outside of BC, as long as the latter remains intact. However, when and where breaches in BC occur, the inflammatory cells can gain access to and destroy podocytes, thus converting cGN into rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis (RPGN). These conclusions also apply to human cGN, where biopsies show that loss of BC integrity is associated with RPGN and progression to end-stage kidney disease. We propose a two-hit hypothesis for the role of cytotoxic CD8+ T cells in the progression of cGN. The initial insult occurs in response to the immune complex formation or deposition, resulting in local capillary and podocyte injury (first hit). The injured podocytes release neo-epitopes, eventually causing T-cell activation and migration to the glomerulus. Upon generation of breaches in BC, macrophages and CD8+ T cells can now gain access to the glomerular space and destroy neo-epitope expressing podocytes (second hit), resulting in RPGN. While further investigation will be required to test this hypothesis, future therapeutic trials should consider targeting of CD8+ T cells in the therapy of progressive cGN.


Blood ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 104 (11) ◽  
pp. 3054-3054
Author(s):  
Yuji Miura ◽  
Christopher J. Thoburn ◽  
Emilie C. Bright ◽  
Elizabeth C. Matsui ◽  
William H. Matsui ◽  
...  

Abstract Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is a serious, life-threatening complication that occurs following allogeneic (allo) bone marrow transplantation (BMT). The use of non-specific immunosuppression or T cell depletion has reduced the incidence of GVHD but at the expense of increased rates of infection and leukemic relapse. Modulation of the major costimulatory pathway (CD28/CTLA4:B7) involved in T cell activation and regulation may lead to specific immune tolerance in the absence of global non-specific immunosuppression. The identification of mRNA splice variants encoding for soluble forms of CD28, CTLA4 and GITR suggests that costimulation of T cells is complex and is not limited to cell-cell contact. The present studies examined the hypothesis that the onset of GVHD and the re-establishment of immune tolerance correlate with the expression levels of these costimulatory molecules. mRNA transcript levels for the soluble (s) and full-length (fl; cell surface associated) variants assessed by quantitative PCR, were temporally examined in peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) from patients undergoing alloBMT (n=38) or autologous (auto) BMT (n=39) with the induction of autoGVHD by cyclosporin A treatment post-transplant. Levels of s and fl CD28 mRNA transcripts in PBLs were significantly increased (>1.5 fold, P<0.05) in patients developing either allo or autoGVHD compared to patients who do not develop GVHD. s and flCTLA4 levels in patients at the onset of allo and autoGVHD were significantly decreased compared to healthy controls (n=22) (>2.3-fold, P<0.01). s and flCTLA4 expression in patients with autoGVHD was significantly decreased compared to patients without autoGVHD (>2.1-fold). sCTLA4 expression in patients with alloGVHD was significantly decreased than patients without alloGVHD. Interestingly, temporal analysis revealed that the levels for sCTLA4 paralleled the recovery from GVHD implicating an active process in the establishment of non-responsiveness. CD28, CTLA4 and GITR s and fl mRNA levels in CD4+CD25+ T regulatory (Treg) cells from allo and autoBMT patients were significantly increased (7-, 41- or 22-fold, P<0.01) compared to the CD4+CD25− subset. Additional studies attempted to identify the potential role of the sCTLA4 protein (encoded by the mRNA splice variant) on the regulation of the lymphocyte response mediated by Treg cells. Addition of the Treg cells to a mixed lymphocyte reaction suppressed the proliferative response of CD8+ T cells to alloantigens (75% suppression; >4 fold reduction of 3H-thymidine incorporation). However, pretreatment of the Treg subset with short interfering RNA (siRNA) to knockdown sCTLA4 gene (confirmed by quantitative PCR) significantly reduced the ability of these cells to suppress the response (minimal suppression was detected, 6%). In vitro siRNA studies also indicated that Treg cells with inhibited sCTLA4 expression were unable to suppress the response of IL-2-stimulated autoreactive CD8+ T cells. Taken together, the results indicate that increased expression of CTLA4 (soluble and cell-surface associated) and the “negative” signal delivered by this molecule to the T cell may regulate the development of GVHD and help to re-establish self tolerance after BMT. Defining the role of costimulation and the modulation of this pathway on immune recognition and regulation not only provides opportunities to enhance the re-establishment of tolerance but also may help to intensify anti-tumor immunotherapeutic strategies.


Blood ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 105 (3) ◽  
pp. 1179-1186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Beadling ◽  
Mark K. Slifka

AbstractRobust CD8+ T-cell activation is vital for the recovery from many viral infections and is orchestrated via the integration of signals delivered through surface molecules, including the T-cell antigen receptors (TcRs) and cytokine receptors. Little is known about how virus-specific T cells interpret sequential or combined stimulation through these receptors, which must undoubtedly occur in vivo during antiviral immune responses. When measured in real time, peptide antigen and the cytokines, interleukin 12 (IL-12) and IL-18, independently regulate the on/off kinetics of protective (interferon γ, tumor necrosis factor α) and immunomodulatory (IL-2, CD40L) cytokine production by activated T cells and memory T cells. The remarkable differences in effector functions elicited by innate or adaptive signals (IL-12/ IL-18 or peptide, respectively) illustrate the complex and stringent regulation of cytokine expression by CD8+ T cells. Together, these results indicate how antiviral T cells incorporate multiple signals from their local microenvironment and tailor their cytokine responses accordingly.


2020 ◽  
Vol 295 (41) ◽  
pp. 14214-14221
Author(s):  
Zhaoqing Hu ◽  
Lin Li ◽  
Banghui Zhu ◽  
Yi Huang ◽  
Xinran Wang ◽  
...  

T-cell activation is a critical part of the adaptive immune system, enabling responses to foreign cells and external stimulus. In this process, T-cell antigen receptor (TCR) activation stimulates translocation of the downstream kinase PKCθ to the membrane, leading to NF-κB activation and thus transcription of relevant genes. However, the details of how PKCθ is recruited to the membrane remain enigmatic. It is known that annexin A5 (ANXA5), a calcium-dependent membrane-binding protein, has been reported to mediate PKCδ activation by interaction with PKCδ, a homologue of PKCθ, which implicates a potential role of ANXA5 involved in PKCθ signaling. Here we demonstrate that ANXA5 does play a critical role in the recruitment of PKCθ to the membrane during T-cell activation. ANXA5 knockout in Jurkat T cells substantially inhibited the membrane translocation of PKCθ upon TCR engagement and blocked the recruitment of CARMA1-BCL10-MALT1 signalosome, which provides a platform for the catalytic activation of IKKs and subsequent activation of canonical NF-κB signaling in activated T cells. As a result, NF-κB activation was impaired in ANXA5-KO T cells. T-cell activation was also suppressed by ANAX5 knockdown in primary T cells. These results demonstrated a novel role of ANXA5 in PKC translocation and PKC signaling during T-cell activation.


2006 ◽  
Vol 203 (10) ◽  
pp. 2263-2269 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vaiva Vezys ◽  
David Masopust ◽  
Christopher C. Kemball ◽  
Daniel L. Barber ◽  
Leigh A. O'Mara ◽  
...  

Numerous microbes establish persistent infections, accompanied by antigen-specific CD8 T cell activation. Pathogen-specific T cells in chronically infected hosts are often phenotypically and functionally variable, as well as distinct from T cells responding to nonpersistent infections; this phenotypic heterogeneity has been attributed to an ongoing reencounter with antigen. Paradoxically, maintenance of memory CD8 T cells to acutely resolved infections is antigen independent, whereas there is a dependence on antigen for T cell survival in chronically infected hosts. Using two chronic viral infections, we demonstrate that new naive antigen-specific CD8 T cells are primed after the acute phase of infection. These newly recruited T cells are phenotypically distinct from those primed earlier. Long-lived antiviral CD8 T cells are defective in self-renewal, and lack of thymic output results in the decline of virus-specific CD8 T cells, indicating that newly generated T cells preserve antiviral CD8 T cell populations during chronic infection. These findings reveal a novel role for antigen in maintaining virus-specific CD8 T cells during persistent infection and provide insight toward understanding T cell differentiation in chronic infection.


Blood ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 122 (21) ◽  
pp. 1050-1050
Author(s):  
Andressa Sodre Laino ◽  
David M Woods ◽  
Fengdong Cheng ◽  
Hongwei Wang ◽  
Eduardo M. Sotomayor

Abstract The role of histone deacetylases (HDACs) as epigenetic regulators of immune function is becoming increasingly clear. Recently, the role of specific HDACs in orchestrating T-cell maturation, survival and function has begun to emerge, giving rationale to selective therapy to direct immune responses in different disease settings, including cancer. In particular, HDAC6 has recently been characterized as a negative regulator of regulatory T-cell suppressive activity (de Zoeten, Molecular and Cellular Biology, 2011). Here we report an expanded, novel role of HDAC6 in regulating T-cell survival and activation. First, the relative expression of the eleven classic HDACs was evaluated in resting and activated T-cells from mouse and human samples. It was found that the majority of HDACs decrease in expression following activation, including HDAC6. Next, in a HDAC6KO mouse model, it was found that T-cells lacking HDAC6 had skewed survival when compared to wild-type murine T-cells. This difference seems to be the result of an increased CD4+ T-cells population in the lymph nodes, with a concomitant decrease in viable CD8+ T-cells. To determine whether this population skewing was the consequence of defects in HDAC6KO mice T-cell development, wild-type murine T-cells were treated with an isotype-selective HDAC6 inhibitor. The results seen in HDAC6KO T-cells were recapitulated when wild-type T-cells were activated and treated with HDAC6 specific inhibitors, indicating a role of HDAC6 outside of thymic development in promoting CD4+ T-cell survival at the expense of CD8+ T-cells. Interestingly, it was found that activated CD4+ T-cells displayed decreased expression of the apoptosis signaling receptor FAS after HDAC6 inhibition while no differences were observed in CD8+ T-cells under the same conditions. In addition to these results implicating HDAC6 in regulating T-cell survival, expression of surface markers was altered in both CD8+ and CD4+ T-cells, including enhanced expression of the activation molecule CD69 in stimulated T-cells treated with an isotype-selective HDAC6 inhibitor. Finally, in vivo studies in tumor-bearing HDAC6KO mice revealed a significantly delayed in tumor progression. Similar results were observed in lymphoma-bearing mice treated with HDAC6 specific inhibitors. Taken together, this data shows that HDACs are dynamic in expression with regards to T-cell activation state. More specifically, we have unveiled hereto-unexplored roles of HDAC6 in regulating T-cell survival and function, pointing at this specific HDAC as an appealing target to harness T-cell immunity in hematologic malignancies. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


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