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Published on: July 11, 2015
Specific, functional effector/memory CD8+ T cells are found in the liver post-vaccination
Nektarios Dikopoulos1, Ieva Jomantaite, Reinhold Schirmbeck
1Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, University of Ulm, Helmholtzstrasse 8/1, D-89081 Ulm, Germany. nektarios.dikopoulos@medizin.uni-ulm.de
Background:
The liver efficiently eliminates activated CD8+ T blasts. It is unknown if vaccine-primed CD8+ T blasts migrate to and establish functional CD8+ T cell immunity in the liver post-immunization.
Aims:
We tested, if functional CD8+ T cell populations can be detected in the liver post-vaccination.
Methods:
Murine CD8+ T cells with different epitope/restriction specificities were primed by intramuscular injection of protein- or DNA-based vaccines. The kinetics of appearance in the liver, as well as the surface phenotype and functional competence of intrahepatic, specific CD8+ T cell populations was tested.
Results:
High numbers of specific CD8+ T cells appear in the liver after vaccination that are activated (CD69+ CD44+), express effector functions (CD27lo/CD28lo phenotype, interferon gamma secretion, specific cytolytic reactivity), but show no evidence of apoptosis (annexin V-, B220lo, similar numbers/kinetics in primed, congenic lpr/lpr mice). Specific CD8+ T cells from the liver adoptively transferred into a naïve, syngeneic host successfully reconstitute specific CD8+ T cell immunity.
Conclusions:
Specific, functionally competent CD8+ effector/memory T cell populations are established in the liver for months post-vaccination.
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