T cell conditioning explains early disappearance of the memory CD8 T cell response to infection.
Memory CD8 T cells respond more rapidly to acute intracellular infections than naive CD8 T cells. An understanding of the biological processes involved in memory CD8 T cell recognition of Ag and up-regulation of effector mechanism necessitates analyzing memory CD8 T cells at early time points after infection. In the current study, we show that memory CD8 T cells ostensibly disappear from the spleens, blood, and peripheral organs of mice early after infection with Listeria monocytogenes. This disappearance is critically dependent on Ag, and cell-associated Ag alone can mediate this phenomenon. Further investigations, however, suggest that this disappearance is secondary to T cell-APC interactions, also known as T cell conditioning, and disruption of these putative interactions during splenic processing improves recovery of Ag-specific memory CD8 T cell populations after immunization. Conventional analyses of memory CD8 T cell populations early after infection and possibly in the presence of low levels of Ag (as during chronic infections) may exclude significant numbers of the responding CD8 T cell population.
Jabbari
Ali
A
Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Immunology, Roy J. and Lucille A. Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Legge
Kevin L
KL
Harty
John T
JT
D000818:Animals; D000941:Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D007114:Immunization; D007156:Immunologic Memory / Q000276:immunology*; D008089:Listeria monocytogenes / Q000276:immunology*; D008088:Listeriosis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000382:microbiology; D051379:Mice; D010447:Peptide Hydrolases / Q000378:metabolism; D013154:Spleen / Q000276:immunology; D013997:Time Factors
D000941:Antigens; D010447:Peptide Hydrolases