Inverse correlation between NKG2D expression on CD8+ T cells and the frequency of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells in patients with esophageal cancer

Although malignant diseases are known to be associated with immune suppression, detailed mechanisms of this phenomenon are still unknown. NKG2D is an activating cell surface receptor expressed by natural killer (NK) cells and CD8+ T cells, and it has been reported that NKG2D engagement is extremely important for T cell activation. In the current study, NKG2D expression on CD8+ T cells and the frequency of CD4+ CD25+ regulatory T (Treg) cells were determined by multicolor flow cytometry to investigate one of the mechanisms responsible for immune evasion in esophageal cancer patients. NKG2D expression on CD8+ T lymphocytes in esophageal cancer patients was significantly lower than in those of normal controls. NKG2D expression in T3/T4 esophageal cancer was significantly lower than that in T1/T2 esophageal cancer. CD8+ T cells from patients with lymph node metastasis expressed significantly lower NKG2D than those without lymph node metastasis. Moreover, significantly lower NKG2D expression was observed in stage III/IV cancer in comparison with stage I/II. The frequency of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells in esophageal cancer patients was significantly higher than those in normal controls. NKG2D expression on CD8+ T cells was significantly inversely correlated with the frequency of CD4+CD25+ Treg cells in esophageal cancer patients. Our data indicates that decreased NKG2D expression on CD8+ T cells is correlated with disease severity. Decreased NKG2D expression and an increase in Treg cells may be one of the key mechanisms responsible for immune evasion in esophageal cancer.     

4-1BB regulates NKG2D costimulation in human cord blood CD8+ T cells

Ligation of NKG2D, a potent costimulatory receptor, can be either beneficial or detrimental to CD8(+) cytotoxic T cell (CTL) responses. Factors for these diverse NKG2D effects remain elusive. In this study, we demonstrate that 4-1BB, another costimulatory receptor, is an essential regulator of NKG2D in CD8(+) T cells. Costimulation of NKG2D caused down-modulation of NKG2D, but induced 4-1BB expression on the cell surface, even in the presence of TGF-beta1, which inhibits 4-1BB expression. Resulting NKG2D(-)4-1BB(+) cells were activated but still in an immature state with low cytotoxic activity. However, subsequent 4-1BB costimulation induced cytotoxic activity and restored down-modulated NKG2D. The cytotoxic activity and NKG2D expression induced by 4-1BB on NKG2D(+)4-1BB(+) cells were refractory to TGF-beta1 down-modulation. Such 4-1BB effects were enhanced by IL-12. In contrast, in the presence of IL-4, 4-1BB effects were abolished because IL-4 down-modulated NKG2D and 4-1BB expression in cooperation with TGF-beta1, generating another CD8(+) T-cell type lacking both NKG2D and 4-1BB. These NKG2D(-)4-1BB(-) cells were inert and unable to gain cytotoxic activity. Our results suggest that 4-1BB plays a critical role in protecting NKG2D from TGF-beta1-mediated down-modulation. Co-expression of NKG2D and 4-1BB may represent an important biomarker for defining competency of tumor infiltrating CD8(+) T cells.     

The expression and function of NKG2D molecule on intrahepatic CD8+ T cells in chronic viral hepatitis

Summary. The natural killer (NK) cell receptor, NKG2D is a member of the c‐type lectin‐activating receptor family. It is expressed by all NK cells and by a sub‐population of CD8+ T cells. NKG2D engagement with its ligands directly activates NK cells and acts as a co‐stimulator on CD8+ T cells. Recent reports, however, have demonstrated a role for NKG2D in direct T‐cell activation in chronic inflammation. The aim of this study was to investigate the pattern of expression and the functional role of NKG2D on circulating and intrahepatic CD8+ T cells in chronic viral hepatitis. Peripheral blood lymphocytes and intrahepatic lymphocytes from 45 patients with chronic viral hepatitis (HBV and HCV) were studied. Phenotypic NKG2D expression and its functional ability to activate intrahepatic and circulating lymphocytes were analysed. Intrahepatic CD8+ T cells display increased NKG2D expression in chronic viral hepatitis in comparison with circulating CD8+ T cells. NKG2D co‐stimulates intrahepatic CD8+ T cells and hepatitis B virus‐specific CD8+ T cells. However, we could not demonstrate an ability to directly activate CD8+ T cells through the NKG2D signalling pathway alone. NKG2D is up‐regulated on intrahepatic CD8+ T cells in type B and C chronic viral hepatitis; however, its function appears to be restricted to that of a co‐stimulatory molecule.     

CD8+CD122+CD49dlow regulatory T cells maintain T-cell homeostasis by killing activated T cells via Fas/FasL-mediated cytotoxicity

The Fas/FasL (CD95/CD178) system is required for immune regulation; however, it is unclear in which cells, when, and where Fas/FasL molecules act in the immune system. We found that CD8⁺CD122⁺ cells, which are mostly composed of memory T cells in comparison with naïve cells in the CD8⁺CD122⁻ population, were previously shown to include cells with regulatory activity and could be separated into CD49d^low cells and CD49d^high cells. We established in vitro and in vivo experimental systems to evaluate the regulatory activity of CD122⁺ cells. Regulatory activity was observed in CD8⁺CD122⁺CD49d^low but not in CD8⁺CD122⁺CD49d^high cells, indicating that the regulatory cells in the CD8⁺CD122⁺ population could be narrowed down to CD49d^low cells. CD8⁺CD122⁻ cells taken from lymphoproliferation (lpr) mice were resistant to regulation by normal CD122⁺ Tregs. CD122⁺ Tregs taken from generalized lymphoproliferative disease (gld) mice did not regulate wild-type CD8⁺CD122⁻ cells, indicating that the regulation by CD122⁺ Tregs is Fas/FasL-dependent. CD122⁺ Tregs taken from IL-10–deficient mice could regulate CD8⁺CD122⁻ cells as equally as wild-type CD122⁺ Tregs both in vitro and in vivo. MHC class I-missing T cells were not regulated by CD122⁺ Tregs in vitro. CD122⁺ Tregs also regulated CD4⁺ cells in a Fas/FasL-dependent manner in vitro. These results suggest an essential role of Fas/FasL as a terminal effector of the CD122⁺ Tregs that kill activated T cells to maintain immune homeostasis.Fas (CD95) and its ligand FasL (CD178) compose a unique system that is strongly related to programmed cell death (1). FasL has been considered one of the effector molecules involved in the killing of target cells by cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) (2). When Fas binds to FasL, it induces downstream signal transduction pathways that subsequently activate cell death induction pathways (3, 4). Thus, the Fas/FasL system appears to act as an effector for CTL-mediated killing of virus-infected or cancer cells, similar to the perforin–granzyme system (5, 6). However, because Fas-mutant (lpr) and FasL-deficient (gld) mice show lymphoproliferative changes, it has been suggested that the Fas/FasL system is important for suppression/regulation of activated effector T cells (7, 8).Molecular mechanisms after Fas activation have been thoroughly investigated, and the signal transduction pathway has been largely elucidated (9, 10). However, research on the cellular events that use the Fas/FasL system has progressed comparatively slowly. There are only a few relevant reports in this respect, mostly of human CD4⁺Foxp3⁺ Tregs that use the Fas/FasL system for their regulatory activity. [In this article, we use the term “Treg(s)” for any kind of T cells that show immune regulatory activity.] To complicate matters further, some contradictory reports claim that such Fas/FasL-engaging Tregs do not exist (8, 11, 12). No reliable reports suggesting that CD8⁺ T cells use the Fas/FasL system for their regulatory action are available. Therefore, it is not clear precisely which subset of T cells express FasL or where Fas/FasL-dependent CD8⁺ Tregs, if such cells exist, are located and at which point they function. Thus, the ultimate pathophysiological role of the Fas/FasL system is still unknown.Regulation of the immune reaction is of pivotal importance for maintaining health in multicellular organisms. In highly developed animals, Tregs, a subset of T lymphocytes especially known as CD4⁺CD25⁺Foxp3⁺ cells, are the main regulators of the immune response (13–16). However, it is not quite clear whether CD8⁺ regulatory T cells exist; there are only few and contradictory reports on their existence, in contrast to the reports on CD4⁺ Tregs. A population of predominantly CD8⁺ suppressor T cells has been described and debated in the 1980s (17, 18). In the 2000s, we found and reported that the cells of central memory phenotype (CD8⁺CD122⁺) also possess the regulatory function, and some other reports regarding CD8⁺ Tregs with some contradictory findings have been published. To date, more than 10 CD8⁺ Treg populations with different markers have been reported (19).One of the best characterized CD8⁺ Treg populations is the CD8⁺CD122⁺ Treg (122⁺ Treg) population. To confirm the existence of CD8⁺ Tregs, markers that may be possible to distinguish Tregs from other T cells were examined. We previously found that CD49d can separate CD8⁺CD122⁺ cells into at least two subsets (CD49d^low and CD49d^high) (20). To judge which cells have a stronger regulatory activity, we prepared two experimental systems: an in vitro system, based on cell culture, and an in vivo system, based on adoptive transfer of T cells.Interestingly, CD8⁺ Tregs express CD122 (IL-2/IL-15 receptor β chain) in contrast to CD4⁺ Tregs, which express CD25 (IL-2 receptor α chain), indicating the fundamental importance of IL-2 at the development/maturation of both CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ Tregs. Suzuki and coworkers generated CD122-deficient mice using gene targeting (21) and used them to identify 122⁺ Tregs (22). In this study, which is a follow-up study to our previous report, we performed in vitro and in vivo experiments to gain further understanding of these cells. We found that CD49d might be a good marker for classifying CD8⁺ T cells into naïve, resting T cells (CD62L⁺CD122⁻), effector memory T cells (CD62L⁻), and T cells of central memory phenotype (CD122⁺CD49d^low), by using multicolor staining of CD62L, CD122, and CD49d. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the role of the Fas/FasL system in the action of CD8⁺CD122⁺ Tregs (122⁺ Tregs) (22–25). Additionally, we show that CD8⁺ Tregs are included in the CD49d^low population, which corresponds to the central memory T-cell population, and that their mechanism of suppression depends on the cytotoxicity mediated by the Fas and FasL interaction.     

Calcineurin-dependent negative regulation of CD94/NKG2A expression on naive CD8+ T cells

Immune responses lead to expression of immunoregulatory molecules on T cells, including natural killer (NK) receptors, such as CD94/NKG2A on CD8(+) T cells; these receptors restrain CD8(+) responses, thereby preventing T-cell exhaustion in chronic infections and limiting immunopathology. Here, we examined the requirements for inducing CD94/NKG2A on T cells responding to antigen. In vitro, moderate induction of CD94/NKG2A expression occurred after exposure of naive CD8(+) (but not CD4(+)) cells to CD3 ligation or specific peptide. Surprisingly, expression was inhibited by CD28/B7 costimulation. Such inhibition applied only to CD94/NKG2A and not other NK receptors (NKG2D) and was mediated by IL-2. Inhibition by IL-2 occurred via a NFAT cell-independent component of the calcineurin pathway, and CD94/NKG2A induction was markedly enhanced in the presence of calcineurin blockers, such as FK506 or using calcineurin-deficient T cells, both in vitro and in vivo. In addition to CD28-dependent inhibition by IL-2, CD94/NKG2A expression was impaired by several other cytokines (IL-4, IL-23, and transforming growth factor-β) but enhanced by others (IL-6, IL-10, and IL-21). The complex interplay between these various stimuli may account for the variable expression of CD94/NKG2A during responses to different pathogens in vivo.     

Hepatitis C virus-induced secretion of inflammatory chemokines preferentially recruits NKG2A+CD8+ T cells

In patients with hepatitis C, a loss-of-function mutation of chemokine receptor CCR5 (CCR5Delta32) has been shown to be associated with spontaneous viral clearance and lower levels of hepatic inflammation. In the present study, we show that CCR5 is coexpressed with the inhibitory NKG2A receptor on CD8(+) T cells. Consequently, CCR5(+) T cells were highly susceptible to NKG2A-mediated inhibition of cytotoxic activity and NKG2A(+) lymphocytes were preferentially attracted by CCR5 ligands induced by hepatitis C virus E2 antigen. Thus, CCR5 is likely to exert immunoregulatory effects in hepatitis C virus infection by preferentially recruiting CD8(+) T cells bearing the inhibitory NKG2A receptor to the liver.     

CD4+NKG2D+ T cells in Crohn's disease mediate inflammatory and cytotoxic responses through MICA interactions

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Crohn's disease (CD) is an inflammatory bowel disease characterized by uncontrolled immune responses to bacterial flora, with excessive activation of T lymphocytes. MICA is a stress-induced major histocompatibility complex-related molecule expressed on normal intestinal epithelial cells (IECs) and recognized by the NKG2D-activating receptor on CD8(+) T cells, gammadelta T cells, and natural killer cells. We examined the role of MICA-NKG2D interactions in the activation of T lymphocytes in CD. METHODS: MICA expression was analyzed by flow cytometry on IECs isolated from patients with active inflammatory bowel disease and controls. NKG2D expression and function were analyzed on lamina propria and peripheral blood lymphocytes. RESULTS: MICA expression was significantly increased on IECs in CD, with higher expression in macroscopically involved areas. A subset of CD4(+) T cells expressing NKG2D was increased in the lamina propria from patients with CD compared with controls and patients with ulcerative colitis. CD4(+)NKG2D(+) T cells with a Th1 cytokine profile and expressing perforin were increased in the periphery and in the mucosa in CD. CD4(+)NKG2D(+) T-cell clones were functionally active through MICA-NKG2D interactions, producing interferon-gamma and killing targets expressing MICA. IECs from patients with CD had the ability to expand this subset in vitro. CD4(+)NKG2D(+) lamina propria lymphocytes from patients with CD highly expressed interleukin-15R alpha, and interleukin-15 increased NKG2D and DAP10 expression in CD4(+)NKG2D(+) T-cell clones. CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight the role of MICA-NKG2D in the activation of a unique subset of CD4(+) T cells with inflammatory and cytotoxic properties in CD.     

Expansion of natural killer cell receptor (CD94/NKG2A)-expressing cytolytic CD8 T cells and CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells from the same cord blood unit

OBJECTIVE: Cord blood contains a significant number of precursor cells that differentiate to cytotoxic effector cells and immunoregulatory cells. We tried to expand inhibitory natural killer cell receptor CD94-expressing CD8 T cells with cytolytic activity and CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells from the same cord cell unit. METHODS: Cytotoxic CD94-expressing CD8 T cells were expanded from CD4-depleted cord blood using an immobilized anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody and a cytokine and also CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T cells were expanded from a CD4-enriched fraction derived from the same cord blood unit using anti-CD3/CD28 monoclonal antibody-coated Dynabeads and cytokines. RESULTS: We were able to obtain a more than 1000-fold expansion of CD94-expressing CD8 T cells and a more than 50-fold expansion of CD4(+)CD25(+) cells from the same cord blood unit. These expanded CD4(+)CD25(+) cells expressed FoxP3 mRNA at a level about 100-fold higher than that in isolated CD25(-) cells and could suppress allogeneic mixed lymphocyte culture by >80% (effector cells: CD4(+)CD25(+) cells = 2:1). Cytolytic activities of purified CD94-expressing cells detected by a 4-hour (51)Cr release assay against K562 were >60%. Coculture of CD94-expressing cells with expanded CD4(+)CD25(+) cells did not have any effect on cytolytic activities of purified CD94-expressing cells against K562 cells. CONCLUSION: These expanded cytolytic CD94-expressing CD8 cells might be able to induce a graft-vs-leukemia effect without enhancing graft-vs-host disease, and CD4(+)CD25(+) cells might be able to suppress allogeneic responses, including graft-vs-host disease and graft rejection after cord blood transplantation.     

CD25+CD4+ T cells contribute to the control of memory CD8+ T cells

Previously we demonstrated that IL-15 and IL-2 control the number of memory CD8+ T cells in mice. IL-15 induces, and IL-2 suppresses the division of these cells. Here we show that CD25+CD4+ regulatory T cells play an important role in the IL-2-mediated control of memory phenotype CD8+ T cell number. In animals, the numbers of CD25+CD4+ T cells were inversely correlated with the numbers of memory phenotype CD8+ T cells with age. Treatment with anti-IL-2 caused CD25+CD4+ T cells to disappear and, concurrently, increased the numbers of memory phenotype CD8+ T cells. This increase in the numbers of CD8+ memory phenotype T cells was not manifest in animals lacking CD4+ cells. Importantly, adoptive transfer of CD25+CD4+ T cells significantly reduced division of memory phenotype CD8+ T cells. Thus, we conclude that CD25+CD4+ T cells are involved in the IL-2-mediated inhibition of memory CD8+ T cell division and that IL-2 controls memory phenotype CD8+ T cell numbers at least in part through maintenance of the CD25+CD4+ T cell population.     

CD8alpha alpha memory effector T cells descend directly from clonally expanded CD8alpha +beta high TCRalpha beta T cells in vivo

Whereas most peripheral CD8(+) alphabeta T cells highly express CD8alphabeta heterodimer in healthy individuals, there is an increase of CD8alpha(+)beta(low) or CD8alphaalpha alphabeta T cells in HIV infection or Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome and after bone marrow transplantation. The significance of these uncommon cell populations is not well understood. There has been some question as to whether these subsets and CD8alpha(+)beta(high) cells belong to different ontogenic lineages or whether a fraction of CD8alpha(+)beta(high) cells have down-regulated CD8beta chain. Here we assessed clonality of CD8alphaalpha and CD8alpha(+)beta(low) alphabeta T cells as well as their phenotypic and functional characteristics. Deduced from surface antigens, cytotoxic granule constituents, and cytokine production, CD8alpha(+)beta(low) cells are exclusively composed of effector memory cells. CD8alphaalpha cells comprise effector memory cells and terminally differentiated CD45RO(-)CCR7(-) memory cells. T-cell receptor (TCR) Vbeta complementarity-determining region 3 (CDR3) spectratyping analysis and subsequent sequencing of CDR3 cDNA clones revealed polyclonality of CD8alpha(+)beta(high) cells and oligoclonality of CD8alpha(+)beta(low) and CD8alphaalpha cells. Importantly, some expanded clones within CD8alphaalpha cells were also identified within CD8alpha(+)beta(high) and CD8alpha(+)beta(low) subpopulations. Furthermore, signal-joint TCR rearrangement excision circles concentration was reduced with the loss of CD8beta expression. These results indicated that some specific CD8alpha(+)beta(high) alphabeta T cells expand clonally, differentiate, and simultaneously down-regulate CD8beta chain possibly by an antigen-driven mechanism. Provided that antigenic stimulation directly influences the emergence of CD8alphaalpha alphabeta T cells, these cells, which have been previously regarded as of extrathymic origin, may present new insights into the mechanisms of autoimmune diseases and immunodeficiencies, and also serve as a useful biomarker to evaluate the disease activities.     

Relationship between the frequency of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells and the level of CD38+CD8+ T cells in untreated HIV-infected individuals

CD8+ T cells are critical for effective host defenses against viral infections. Studies addressing HIV-induced immune responses in infected individuals have suggested that CD8+ T cells play an important role in controlling viral replication. However, despite an abundance of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells, HIV is not contained in many untreated patients. Active HIV replication is associated with numerous immunologic changes, the most notable and consistent of which is an increase in CD8+ T cells expressing CD38. Previous studies have demonstrated that the expression of CD38 on CD8+ T cells is associated with poor prognostic outcome in infected individuals with detectable plasma viremia; however, the relationship between the expression of CD38 and the frequency of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells is unclear. We demonstrate a correlation between levels of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells and levels of CD8+ T cells expressing CD38 in untreated patients. The distribution of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells was heavily skewed toward CD38+CD8+ T cells in patients with a high percentage of CD38+CD8+ T cells. Spontaneous/Fas-mediated apoptosis in CD38+CD8+ T cells was significantly higher in patients with high percentages of CD38+CD8+ T cells. Our data suggest that a substantial proportion of the HIV-specific CD8+ T cells present in CD38+CD8+ T cells in patients with active viral replication arise by HIV-driven aberrant immune activation and may not manifest effective cytolytic activity against infected targets due to a high degree of susceptibility to apoptosis, thus providing an explanation of why HIV is not successfully contained by CD8+ T cells in such individuals.     

CD8~+T细胞在乙型肝炎病毒感染发病中的作用研究进展

在乙型肝炎病毒(HBV)感染过程中,HBV特异性CD8~+T细胞的作用至关重要,它不仅参与病毒的控制和清除,同时也参与疾病的发病,机体的免疫应答水平是决定HBV被清除还是在体内长期存在的关键。本文主要讨论了在HBV感染的急性期和慢性期,HBV特异性CD8~+T细胞的表型和功能变化的相关最新研究进展,总结了关于CD8~+T细胞基础研究的最新知识,介绍了HBV感染的不同时期CD8~+T细胞对病毒清除或病毒持续存在的作用机制。同时,也对新型的HBV特异性CD8~+T细胞细胞免疫模型系统和检测方法的建立做了介绍,并列举了与传统方法无法比拟的检测优势和深远意义。     

In vitro cytotoxicity of CD8+ T cells in multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis. A preliminary report

Background and objective:   Specific CD8+ T-cell cytotoxicity has been recognized as being involved in the elimination of drug-susceptible tuberculosis (DS-TB). Given that there is currently no information on the cytotoxic effector functions of CD8+ T cells in multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), our objective was to analyse the cytotoxic activity, both basal and stimulated, of CD8+ T cells from MDR-TB patients and compare it with that of DS-TB patients, as well as purified protein derivative (PPD)+ and PPD− subjects.
Methods:   Cytotoxic activity of CD8+ T cells from MDR-TB patients, DS-TB patients, PPD+ and PPD− subjects was measured by a colorimetric assay, using H37Rv culture filtrate protein as the antigenic stimulus.
Results:   Twenty-eight subjects were studied (7 MDR-TB patients, 7 DS-TB patients, 7 PPD+ subjects and 7 PPD− subjects). In the presence of the antigenic stimulus, the cytotoxic activity of CD8+ T cells from MDR-TB patients (% lysis) increased from 6.7% to 59.6% ( P  < 0.001). In DS-TB patients lysis increased from 3.2% to 22.5% ( P  < 0.001), whereas in PPD+ subjects it increased from 2.7% to 12.0% ( P  < 0.001) and in PPD− subjects from 1.3% to 3.2% ( P  < 0.001). Basal cytotoxic activity was significantly higher for MDR-TB patients than PPD+ and PPD− subjects ( P  = 0.003), but not compared with that for DS-TB patients ( P  = 0.05). Stimulated cytotoxic activity was highest for MDR-TB patients.
Conclusions:   CD8+ T cells from MDR-TB patients showed an exaggerated cytotoxic activity after antigenic stimulation. Further studies are required to elucidate the role of this response in the immunopathogenesis of MDR-TB.     

Enhanced signaling through the IL-2 receptor in CD8+ T cells regulated by antigen recognition results in preferential proliferation and expansion of responding CD8+ T cells rather than promotion of cell death

Multiple cytokines, including IL-2, can affect T cell proliferation and survival. However, IL-2 can lead to apoptosis as well as proliferation, making unclear whether IL-2 receptor (IL-2R) signals ultimately have a predominantly positive or negative effect. To address this issue, we examined the effect of enhancing IL-2R signals in CD8(+) T cells after antigen stimulation by engineering a transgenic (Tg) mouse strain with CD8(+) T cells capable of augmented, regulated, autocrine IL-2R signaling after target recognition by means of expression of a chimeric granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF)/IL-2R. The Tg CD8(+) T cells can bind the granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating GM-CSF produced by antigen stimulation, but the GM-CSF binding results in delivery of an IL-2R signal. After antigen stimulation in vivo, the Tg T cells demonstrated marked increases in the initial proliferative response and cell expansion and displayed continued increases in cell expansion after repeated antigen exposure. These data suggest that the predominant role of IL-2R signals delivered to responding CD8(+) T cells is to set the size of the initial response to antigen by promoting T cell proliferation and survival and not cell death.     

Role of CXCR5+ CD8+ T cells in human hepatitis B virus infection

The replication of HBV in hepatocytes can be effectively inhibited by lifelong antiviral therapy. Because of the long-term presence of HBV reservoirs, the virus rebound frequently occurs once the treatment is stopped, which poses a considerable obstacle to the complete removal of the virus. In terms of gene composition, regulation of B cell action and function, CXCR5⁺CD8⁺ T cells are similar to CXCR5⁺CD4⁺ T follicular helper cells, while these cells are characterized by elevated programmed cell death 1 and cytotoxic-related proteins. CXCR5⁺CD8⁺T cells are strongly associated with progression in inflammatory and autoimmune diseases. In addition, CXCR5 expression on the surface of CD8⁺ T cells is mostly an indicator of memory stem cell-like failure in progenitor cells in cancer that are more responsive to immune checkpoint blocking therapy. Furthermore, the phenomena have also been demonstrated in some viral infections, highlighting the duality of the cellular immune response of CXCR5⁺CD8⁺ T cells. This mini-review will focus on the function of CXCR5⁺CD8⁺ T cells in HBV infection and discuss the function of these CD8⁺ T cells and the potential of associated co-stimulators or cytokines in HBV therapeutic strategies.     

CD8+ T cells control the TH phenotype of MBP-reactive CD4+ T cells in EAE mice

Trimolecular interactions between the T cell antigen receptor and MHC/peptide complexes, together with costimulatory molecules and cytokines, control the initial activation of naive T cells and determine whether the helper precursor cell differentiates into either T helper (TH)1 or TH2 effector cells. We now present evidence that regulatory CD8(+) T cells provide another level of control of TH phenotype during further evolution of immune responses. These regulatory CD8(+) T cells are induced by antigen-triggered CD4(+) TH1 cells during T cell vaccination and, in vitro, distinguish mature TH1 from TH2 cells in a T cell antigen receptor Vbeta-specific and Qa-1-restricted manner. In vivo, protection from experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) induced by T cell vaccination depends on CD8(+) T cells, and myelin basic protein-reactive TH1 Vbeta8(+) clones, but not TH2 Vbeta8(+) clones, used as vaccine T cells, protect animals from subsequent induction of EAE. Moreover, in vivo depletion of CD8(+) T cells during the first episode of EAE results in skewing of the TH phenotype toward TH1 upon secondary myelin basic protein stimulation. These data provide evidence that CD8(+) T cells control autoimmune responses, in part, by regulating the TH phenotype of self-reactive CD4(+) T cells.     

Th17与CD8+T细胞在慢性阻塞性肺疾病中的作用

慢性阻塞性肺疾病(COPD)是由吸烟诱导的,影响肺实质及气道的慢性炎性疾病.Th17细胞能分泌多种细胞因子促进中性粒细胞聚集活化,并增加CD8+T细胞数量,在COPD发病机制中发挥重要作用.在不同炎性微环境中,Thl7细胞与CD8+T细胞共同参与COPD发病,连接COPD的先天免疫反应及后天免疫反应.     

Role of CD4+ T cells in sarcoidosis

Activated pulmonary CD4(+) T lymphocytes of the Th-1 type are essential for the inflammatory process in sarcoidosis, and IFN-gamma production is crucial for the characteristic granuloma formation. Both the T cells and their inflammatory mediators may constitute possible targets for immunotherapy. A particular T-cell subset, the T-cell receptor (TCR) AV2S3(+) bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) CD4(+) T cells, is found at dramatically increased levels in the BAL fluid of human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-DRB1*0301-positive and/or HLA-DRB3*0101-positive patients with sarcoidosis. The AV2S3(+) BAL CD4(+) T cells strongly associate with the sarcoid inflammation, and future studies on this particular T-cell subset to reveal their specificity may lead to the identification of sarcoidosis-specific antigen(s). T-cell subpopulations with regulatory functions (i.e., natural killer T cells and T regulatory cells) have recently been described as abnormal in sarcoidosis. Dysfunctional regulatory T cells may allow T effector cells to contribute to the formation of granulomas, and they may thus be relevant for the inflammatory process in this disease. These findings are exciting news and will be of help in designing new treatment strategies.