Pulmonary T cells induced by respiratory syncytial virus are functional and can make an important contribution to long-lived protective immunity.
The contribution of T cell responses to immunity against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is not fully defined, but this is an important issue for vaccine design. Recent studies demonstrating RSV-induced pulmonary T cell suppression suggest that RSV may have evolved strategies to escape T cell immunity. Here we evaluated potential consequences of RSV-mediated immunosuppression for protective memory T cell responses in vivo. Surprisingly, we found strong ex vivo cytolytic activity and interferon production of pulmonary RSV-specific CD8(+) T cells both in the acute and the memory phase of primary murine RSV infection. More significantly, T cell memory made an important contribution to immunity against RSV independent of antibodies. Thus, RSV-primed mice were protected against challenge with RSV-recombinant vaccinia viruses, which can be controlled by RSV-specific T cells, but not by RSV-specific antibodies. In conclusion, RSV does not appear to impair acute and protective memory T cell responses induced by a primary infection. These findings further support that induction of T cell immunity should be a relevant goal for RSV vaccines.
Ostler
Tobias
T
Children's Hospital, University of Freiburg, Germany.
Ehl
Stephan
S
D000818:Animals; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D003602:Cytotoxicity, Immunologic; D005260:Female; D007114:Immunization; D007156:Immunologic Memory / Q000276:immunology*; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000378:metabolism; D008168:Lung / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D023421:Models, Animal; D010053:Ovary / Q000821:virology; D018357:Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology; D012136:Respiratory Syncytial Viruses / Q000502:physiology*; D013047:Specific Pathogen-Free Organisms; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology*; D013997:Time Factors; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic / Q000276:immunology; D014616:Vaccinia virus; D014765:Viral Vaccines / Q000276:immunology; D014779:Virus Replication
D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic; D014765:Viral Vaccines; D007371:Interferon-gamma