Patterns of cytokine production in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-specific human CD8+ T cells after stimulation with HIV-1-infected CD4+ T cells.
Although human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-specific CD8+ T cells can produce various cytokines that suppress HIV-1 replication or modulate anti-HIV-1 immunity, the extent to which HIV-1-specific CD8+ T cells produce cytokines when they recognize HIV-1-infected CD4+ T cells in vivo still remains unclear. We first analyzed the abilities of 10 cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) clones specific for three HIV-1 epitopes to produce gamma interferon, macrophage inflammatory protein 1beta, and tumor necrosis factor alpha after stimulation with epitope peptide-pulsed cells. These CTL clones produced these cytokines in various combinations within the same specificity and among the different specificities, suggesting a functional heterogeneity of HIV-1-specific effector CD8+ T cells in cytokine production. In contrast, the HIV-1-specific CTL clones for the most part produced a single cytokine, without heterogeneity of cytokine production among the clones, after stimulation with HIV-1-infected CD4+ T cells. The loss of heterogeneity in cytokine production may be explained by low surface expression of HLA class I-epitope peptide complexes. Freshly isolated HIV-1-specific CD8+ T cells with an effector/memory or memory phenotype produced much more of the cytokines than the same epitope-specific CTL clones when stimulated with HIV-1-infected CD4+ T cells. Cytokine production from HIV-1-specific memory/effector and memory CD8+ T cells might be a critical event in the eradication of HIV-1 in HIV-1-infected individuals.
Fujiwara
Mamoru
M
Division of Viral Immunology, Center for AIDS Research, Kumamoto University, 2-2-1 Honjo, Kumamoto 860-0811, Japan.
Takata
Hiroshi
H
Oka
Shinichi
S
Tomiyama
Hiroko
H
Takiguchi
Masafumi
M
D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000821:virology*; D054407:Chemokine CCL4; D016207:Cytokines / Q000032:analysis*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000032:analysis; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D019402:Macrophage Inflammatory Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology; D013602:T-Lymphocytes, Cytotoxic / Q000276:immunology; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000032:analysis
D054407:Chemokine CCL4; D016207:Cytokines; D019402:Macrophage Inflammatory Proteins; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D007371:Interferon-gamma