title: Assessing T lymphocyte function and differentiation by genetically encoded reporter systems.
abstract: Upon infection, antigen-specific T lymphocytes become activated, proliferate, differentiate, and acquire various effector functions. Much of our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying these processes derives from studies leveraging gene deletion, RNAi, and overexpression approaches. However, these perturbations do not inform on the regulation of gene activity under physiological conditions. Genetic reporter systems that couple biological events to detectable output signals are capable of providing this information. Here, we review the reporter approaches being currently used to investigate various aspects of T cell behavior, and discuss advantages and disadvantages inherent to different designs. We outline emerging applications based on recent advances in other fields, and highlight the potential of synthetic biology and genome engineering to address open questions in the field.
authors.affiliation: Division of Immunology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Mirjam E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Hoekstra
authors.affiliation: Division of Immunology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Feline E
authors.initials: FE
authors.lastname: Dijkgraaf
authors.affiliation: Division of Immunology, The Netherlands Cancer Institute, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: t.schumacher@nki.nl.
authors.forename: Ton N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Schumacher
authors.affiliation: Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency (CCI), University Medical Center Freiburg and University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany. Electronic address: jan.rohr@uniklinik-freiburg.de.
authors.forename: Jan C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Rohr
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000235:genetics*; D017930:Genes, Reporter / Q000235:genetics*; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D006801:Humans; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism
keywords: T cells; fluorescent proteins; genetically encoded reporter systems; signaling reporters