Protective cellular retroviral immunity requires both CD4+ and CD8+ immune T cells.
We have found previously that postexposure chemoprophylaxis with 3'-azido-3'-deoxythymidine (also known as zidovudine or AZT) in combination with recombinant human alpha A/D interferon fully protected mice exposed to a lethal dose of Rauscher murine leukemia virus (RLV) against viremia and disease. After cessation of therapy, over 90% of these mice were able to resist rechallenge with live RLV, thus demonstrating an acquired immunity. Adoptive cell transfer of 4 x 10(7) cells from immunized mice fully protected naive recipients from viremia and splenomegaly after RLV challenge. However, when these immune T cells were fractionated into CD4+ and CD8+ subpopulations, only partial protection was found when 4 x 10(7) T cells of either subset were given. Full protection against RLV challenge was seen again when the T-cell subsets from immunized mice were recombined and transferred at the same number into naive mice. We conclude that cellular immunity alone is protective and that both CD4+ and CD8+ cell types are required for conferring full protection against live virus challenge.
Hom
R C
RC
Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts.
Finberg
R W
RW
Mullaney
S
S
Ruprecht
R M
RM
D000818:Animals; D000945:Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte / Q000276:immunology*; D015704:CD4 Antigens / Q000276:immunology*; D016827:CD8 Antigens; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D016219:Immunotherapy, Adoptive; D051379:Mice; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D011925:Rauscher Virus / Q000276:immunology* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013154:Spleen / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*
D000945:Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte; D015704:CD4 Antigens; D016827:CD8 Antigens