In Vitro Evaluation of Bunyavirus T Cell Immunity

Characterization and quantitation of T cell responses following infection and/or vaccination can provide insight into mechanisms of host cell immunity that provide resolution of acute infection or protection from future infection or disease. While these types of studies are very advanced for viruses such as HIV, influenza, and SARS-CoV-2, they are less well developed for most of the Bunyaviruses. Cytotoxic CD8T cells are especially relevant in the context of viral infections since they recognize virus-infected cells via interaction of the T cell receptor with virally derived peptides presented in the context of MHCI. CD4T follicular cells are especially important for augmenting the antiviral antibody response. This chapter provides methods for characterizing T cell responses post infection/vaccination in both mice and humans as well as several methods for quantifying virus-specific T cells with the goal of arming bunyavirus researchers with the tools needed to move the field forward.