scholarly journals Comparisons of CD8+ T Cells Specific for Human Immunodeficiency Virus, Hepatitis C Virus, and Cytomegalovirus Reveal Differences in Frequency, Immunodominance, Phenotype, and Interleukin-2 Responsiveness

2009 ◽  
Vol 83 (6) ◽  
pp. 2728-2742 ◽  
Author(s):  
Prasanna Jagannathan ◽  
Christine M. Osborne ◽  
Cassandra Royce ◽  
Maura M. Manion ◽  
John C. Tilton ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT To better understand the components of an effective immune response to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the CD8+ T-cell responses to HIV, hepatitis C virus (HCV), and cytomegalovirus (CMV) were compared with regard to frequency, immunodominance, phenotype, and interleukin-2 (IL-2) responsiveness. Responses were examined in rare patients exhibiting durable immune-mediated control over HIV, termed long-term nonprogressors (LTNP) or elite controllers, and patients with progressive HIV infection (progressors). The magnitude of the virus-specific CD8+ T-cell response targeting HIV, CMV, and HCV was not significantly different between LTNP and progressors, even though their capacity to proliferate to HIV antigens was preserved only in LTNP. In contrast to HIV-specific CD8+ T-cell responses of LTNP, HLA B5701-restricted responses within CMV pp65 were rare and did not dominate the total CMV-specific response. Virus-specific CD8+ T cells were predominantly CD27+45RO+ for HIV and CD27−45RA+ for CMV; however, these phenotypes were highly variable and heavily influenced by the degree of viremia. Although IL-2 induced significant expansions of CMV-specific CD8+ T cells in LTNP and progressors by increasing both the numbers of cells entering the proliferating pool and the number of divisions, the proliferative capacity of a significant proportion of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells was not restored with exogenous IL-2. These results suggest that immunodominance by HLA B5701-restricted cells is specific to HIV infection in LTNP and is not a feature of responses to other chronic viral infections. They also suggest that poor responsiveness to IL-2 is a property of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells of progressors that is not shared with responses to other viruses over which immunologic control is maintained.

2001 ◽  
Vol 75 (24) ◽  
pp. 11983-11991 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael R. Betts ◽  
David R. Ambrozak ◽  
Daniel C. Douek ◽  
Sebastian Bonhoeffer ◽  
Jason M. Brenchley ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-specific T-cell responses are thought to play a key role in viral load decline during primary infection and in determining the subsequent viral load set point. The requirements for this effect are unknown, partly because comprehensive analysis of total HIV-specific CD4+ and CD8+T-cell responses to all HIV-encoded epitopes has not been accomplished. To assess these responses, we used cytokine flow cytometry and overlapping peptide pools encompassing all products of the HIV-1 genome to study total HIV-specific T-cell responses in 23 highly active antiretroviral therapy naı̈ve HIV-infected patients. HIV-specific CD8+ T-cell responses were detectable in all patients, ranging between 1.6 and 18.4% of total CD8+ T cells. HIV-specific CD4+ T-cell responses were present in 21 of 23 patients, although the responses were lower (0.2 to 2.94%). Contrary to previous reports, a positive correlation was identified between the plasma viral load and the total HIV-, Env-, and Nef-specific CD8+ T-cell frequency. No correlation was found either between viral load and total or Gag-specific CD4+ T-cell response or between the frequency of HIV-specific CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. These results suggest that overall frequencies of HIV-specific T cells are not the sole determinant of immune-mediated protection in HIV-infection.


2003 ◽  
Vol 77 (20) ◽  
pp. 10900-10909 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christiana Iyasere ◽  
John C. Tilton ◽  
Alison J. Johnson ◽  
Souheil Younes ◽  
Bader Yassine-Diab ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Virus-specific CD4+ T-cell function is thought to play a central role in induction and maintenance of effective CD8+ T-cell responses in experimental animals or humans. However, the reasons that diminished proliferation of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-specific CD4+ T cells is observed in the majority of infected patients and the role of these diminished responses in the loss of control of replication during the chronic phase of HIV infection remain incompletely understood. In a cohort of 15 patients that were selected for particularly strong HIV-specific CD4+ T-cell responses, the effects of viremia on these responses were explored. Restriction of HIV replication was not observed during one to eight interruptions of antiretroviral therapy in the majority of patients (12 of 15). In each case, proliferative responses to HIV antigens were rapidly inhibited during viremia. The frequencies of cells that produce IFN-γ in response to Gag, Pol, and Nef peptide pools were maintained during an interruption of therapy. In a subset of patients with elevated frequencies of interleukin-2 (IL-2)-producing cells, IL-2 production in response to HIV antigens was diminished during viremia. Addition of exogenous IL-2 was sufficient to rescue in vitro proliferation of DR0101 class II Gag or Pol tetramer+ or total-Gag-specific CD4+ T cells. These observations suggest that, during viremia, diminished in vitro proliferation of HIV-specific CD4+ T cells is likely related to diminished IL-2 production. These results also suggest that relatively high frequencies of HIV-specific CD4+ T cells persist in the peripheral blood during viremia, are not replicatively senescent, and proliferate when IL-2 is provided exogenously.


2007 ◽  
Vol 81 (21) ◽  
pp. 11658-11668 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas Kuntzen ◽  
Joerg Timm ◽  
Andrew Berical ◽  
Lia L. Lewis-Ximenez ◽  
Andrea Jones ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT CD8+-T-cell responses play an important role in the containment and clearance of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, and an association between viral persistence and development of viral escape mutations has been postulated. While escape from CD8+-T-cell responses has been identified as a major driving force for the evolution of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), a broader characterization of this relationship is needed in HCV infection. To determine the extent, kinetics, and driving forces of HCV sequence evolution, we sequenced the entire HCV genome longitudinally in four subjects monitored for up to 30 months after acute infection. For two subjects the transmission sources were also available. Of 53 total nonenvelope amino acid substitutions detected, a majority represented forward mutations away from the consensus sequence. In contrast to studies in HIV and SIV, however, only 11% of these were associated with detectable CD8+ T-cell responses. Interestingly, 19% of nonenvelope mutations represented changes toward the consensus sequence, suggesting reversion in the absence of immune pressure upon transmission. Notably, the rate of evolution of forward and reverse mutations correlated with the conservation of each residue, which is indicative of structural constraints influencing the kinetics of viral evolution. Finally, the rate of sequence evolution was observed to decline over the course of infection, possibly reflective of diminishing selection pressure by dysfunctional CD8+ T cells. Taken together, these data provide insight into the extent to which HCV is capable of evading early CD8+ T-cell responses and support the hypothesis that dysfunction of CD8+ T cells may be associated with failure to resolve HCV infections.


2006 ◽  
Vol 81 (6) ◽  
pp. 2713-2725 ◽  
Author(s):  
John C. Tilton ◽  
Marlise R. Luskin ◽  
Alison J. Johnson ◽  
Maura Manion ◽  
Claire W. Hallahan ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Virus-specific CD4+ T-cell responses are thought to be required for the induction and maintenance of many effective CD8+ T-cell and B-cell immune responses in experimental animals and humans. Although the presence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-specific CD4+ T cells has been documented in patients at all stages of HIV infection, many fundamental questions regarding their frequency and function remain. A 10-color, 12-parameter flow cytometric panel was utilized to examine the frequency, memory phenotype (CD27, CCR7, and CD45RA), and cytokine production (interleukin-2 [IL-2], gamma interferon, and tumor necrosis factor alpha) of CD4+ T cells specific for HIV antigens as well as for adenovirus, Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), influenza H1N1 virus, influenza H3N2 virus, cytomegalovirus, varicella-zoster virus (VZV), and tetanus toxoid in normal controls, long-term nonprogressors (LTNP), and HIV-infected patients with progressive disease on or off therapy. The HIV-specific CD4+ T-cell responses in LTNP and patients on therapy were similar in frequency, phenotype, and cytokine production to responses directed against adenovirus, EBV, influenza virus, and VZV. HIV-specific CD4+ T cells from patients off antiretroviral therapy demonstrated a shift towards a CCR7− CD45RA− phenotype and a reduced percentage of IL-2-producing cells. The alterations in cytokine production during HIV viremia were found to be intrinsic to the HIV-specific CD4+ T cells and caused a requirement for IL-2 supplied exogenously for proliferation to occur. These observations suggest that many previously described changes in HIV-specific CD4+ T-cell function and phenotype are a consequence of high levels of antigen in viremic patients. In addition, defects in function and phenotype of HIV-specific CD4+ T cells are not readily discernible in the context of antiretroviral therapy but rather are similar to responses to other viruses.


2009 ◽  
Vol 83 (17) ◽  
pp. 8722-8732 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Brad Jones ◽  
Feng-Yun Yue ◽  
Xiao Xiao Jenny Gu ◽  
Diana V. Hunter ◽  
Shariq Mujib ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The presence of interleukin-2 (IL-2)-producing human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-specific CD4+ T-cell responses has been associated with the immunological control of HIV-1 replication; however, the causal relationship between these factors remains unclear. Here we show that IL-2-producing HIV-1-specific CD4+ T cells can be cloned from acutely HIV-1-infected individuals. Despite the early presence of these cells, each of the individuals in the present study exhibited progressive disease, with one individual showing rapid progression. In this rapid progressor, three IL-2-producing HIV-1 Gag-specific CD4+ T-cell responses were identified and mapped to the following optimal epitopes: HIVWASRELER, REPRGSDIAGT, and FRDYVDRFYKT. Responses to these epitopes in peripheral blood mononuclear cells were monitored longitudinally to >1 year postinfection, and contemporaneous circulating plasma viruses were sequenced. A variant of the FRDYVDRFYKT epitope sequence, FRDYVDQFYKT, was observed in 1/21 plasma viruses sequenced at 5 months postinfection and 1/10 viruses at 7 months postinfection. This variant failed to stimulate the corresponding CD4+ T-cell clone and thus constitutes an escape mutant. Responses to each of the three Gag epitopes were rapidly lost, and this loss was accompanied by a loss of antigen-specific cells in the periphery as measured by using an FRDYVDRFYKT-presenting major histocompatibility complex class II tetramer. Highly active antiretroviral therapy was associated with the reemergence of FRDYVDRFYKT-specific cells by tetramer. Thus, our data support that IL-2-producing HIV-1-specific CD4+ T-cell responses can exert immune pressure during early HIV-1 infection but that the inability of these responses to enforce enduring control of viral replication is related to the deletion and/or dysfunction of HIV-1-specific CD4+ T cells rather than to the fixation of escape mutations at high frequencies.


2007 ◽  
Vol 79 (5) ◽  
pp. 503-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura Capa ◽  
Vincent Soriano ◽  
Javier García-Samaniego ◽  
Marina Nuñez ◽  
Miriam Romero ◽  
...  

1994 ◽  
Vol 179 (2) ◽  
pp. 413-424 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Dadaglio ◽  
S Garcia ◽  
L Montagnier ◽  
M L Gougeon

We have analyzed the V beta usage by CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals in response to an in vitro stimulation with the superantigenic erythrogenic toxin A (ETA) of Streptococcus pyogenes. ETA amplifies specifically CD4+ and CD8+ T cells from control donors expressing the V beta 8 and the V beta 12 elements. When peripheral T cells from asymptomatic HIV-infected individuals were stimulated with ETA, there was a complete lack of activation of the V beta 8+ T cell subset, whereas the V beta 12+ T cell subset responded normally to the superantigen. This V beta-specific anergy, which was also observed in response to staphylococcal enterotoxin E (SEE), affected both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells and represented an intrinsic functional defect rather than a specific lack of response to bacterial superantigens since it was also observed after a stimulation with V beta 8 monoclonal antibodies. The V beta 8 anergic T cells did not express interleukin 2 receptors (IL-2Rs) and failed to proliferate in response to exogenous IL-2 or IL-4, suggesting that this anergy was not a reversible process, at least by the use of these cytokines. The unresponsiveness of the V beta 8 T cell subset is frequent since it was found in 56% of the patients studied, and comparison of the clinical status of responder vs. anergic patients indicated that the only known common factor between them was HIV infection. In addition, it is noteworthy that the anergy of the V beta 8 subset may be a very early phenomenon since it was found in a patient at Centers for Disease Control stage I of the disease. These data provide evidence that a dominant superantigen may be involved in the course of HIV infection and that the contribution of HIV has to be considered.


npj Vaccines ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefania Capone ◽  
Anthony Brown ◽  
Felicity Hartnell ◽  
Mariarosaria Del Sorbo ◽  
Cinzia Traboni ◽  
...  

Abstract Simian adenoviral and modified vaccinia Ankara (MVA) viral vectors used in heterologous prime-boost strategies are potent inducers of T cells against encoded antigens and are in advanced testing as vaccine carriers for a wide range of infectious agents and cancers. It is unclear if these responses can be further enhanced or sustained with reboosting strategies. Furthermore, despite the challenges involved in MVA manufacture dose de-escalation has not been performed in humans. In this study, healthy volunteers received chimpanzee-derived adenovirus-3 and MVA vaccines encoding the non-structural region of hepatitis C virus (ChAd3-NSmut/MVA-NSmut) 8 weeks apart. Volunteers were then reboosted with a second round of ChAd3-NSmut/MVA-NSmut or MVA-NSmut vaccines 8 weeks or 1-year later. We also determined the capacity of reduced doses of MVA-NSmut to boost ChAd3-NSmut primed T cells. Reboosting was safe, with no enhanced reactogenicity. Reboosting after an 8-week interval led to minimal re-expansion of transgene-specific T cells. However, after a longer interval, T cell responses expanded efficiently and memory responses were enhanced. The 8-week interval regimen induced a higher percentage of terminally differentiated and effector memory T cells. Reboosting with MVA-NSmut alone was as effective as with ChAd3-NSmut/MVA-NSmut. A ten-fold lower dose of MVA (2 × 107pfu) induced high-magnitude, sustained, broad, and functional Hepatitis C virus (HCV)-specific T cell responses, equivalent to standard doses (2 × 108 pfu). Overall, we show that following Ad/MVA prime-boost vaccination reboosting is most effective after a prolonged interval and is productive with MVA alone. Importantly, we also show that a ten-fold lower dose of MVA is as potent in humans as the standard dose.


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