Functional impairment of CD8(+) T cells by regulatory T cells during persistent retroviral infection

The establishment of viral persistence generally requires evasion of the host CD8(+) T cell response. Here we describe a form of evasion wherein the CD8(+) T cells are fully capable of recognizing their cognate antigen but their effector functions are suppressed by regulatory T cells. Virus-specific CD8(+) T cells adoptively transferred into mice persistently infected with Friend virus proliferated and appeared activated, but failed to produce IFNgamma or reduce virus loads. Cotransfer experiments revealed that a subpopulation of CD4(+) T cells from persistently infected mice suppressed IFNgamma production by the CD8(+) T cells. Treatment of persistently infected mice with anti-GITR antibody to ameliorate suppression by regulatory T cells significantly improved IFNgamma production by transferred CD8(+) T cells and allowed a significant reduction in viral loads. The results indicate that CD4(+) regulatory T cells contribute to viral persistence and demonstrate an immunotherapy for treating chronic retroviral infections.