title: An initial examination of the potential role of T-cell immunity in protection against feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) infection.
abstract: The importance of vaccine-induced T-cell immunity in conferring protection with prototype and commercial FIV vaccines is still unclear. Current studies performed adoptive transfer of T cells from prototype FIV-vaccinated cats to partial-to-complete feline leukocyte antigen (FLA)-matched cats a day before either homologous FIVPet or heterologous-subtype pathogenic FIVFC1 challenge. Adoptive-transfer (A-T) conferred a protection rate of 87% (13 of 15, p < 0.001) against FIVPet using the FLA-matched T cells, whereas all 12 control cats were unprotected. Furthermore, A-T conferred protection rate of 50% (6 of 12, p<0.023) against FIVFC1 using FLA-matched T cells, whereas all 8 control cats were unprotected. Transfer of FLA-matched T and B cells demonstrated that T cells are needed to confer A-T protection. In addition, complete FLA-matching and addition of T-cell numbers > 13 × 10(6) cells were required for A-T protection against FIVFC1 strain, reported to be a highly pathogenic virus resistant to vaccine-induced neutralizing-antibodies. The addition of FLA-matched B cells alone was not protective. The poor quality of the anti-FIV T-cell immunity induced by the vaccine likely contributed to the lack of protection in an FLA-matched recipient against FIVFC1. The quality of the immune response was determined by the presence of high mRNA levels of cytolysin (perforin) and cytotoxins (granzymes A, B, and H) and T helper-1 cytokines (interferon-γ [IFNγ] and IL2). Increased cytokine, cytolysin and cytotoxin production was detected in the donors which conferred protection in A-T studies. In addition, the CD4(+) and CD8(+) T-cell proliferation and/or IFNγ responses to FIV p24 and reverse transcriptase increased with each year in cats receiving 1X-3X vaccine boosts over 4 years. These studies demonstrate that anti-FIV T-cell immunity induced by vaccination with a dual-subtype FIV vaccine is essential for prophylactic protection against AIDS lentiviruses such as FIV and potentially HIV-1.
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110880, Gainesville, 32611-0880 FL USA.
authors.forename: Alek M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Aranyos
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110880, Gainesville, 32611-0880 FL USA.
authors.forename: Shannon R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Roff
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110880, Gainesville, 32611-0880 FL USA.
authors.forename: Ruiyu
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pu
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiological Science, College of Veterinary Medicine, P.O. Box 100103, Gainesville, 32610-0103 FL USA.
authors.forename: Jennifer L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Owen
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110880, Gainesville, 32611-0880 FL USA.
authors.forename: James K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Coleman
authors.affiliation: Department of Infectious Diseases and Pathology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110880, Gainesville, 32611-0880 FL USA. Electronic address: yamamoto@ufl.edu.
authors.forename: Janet K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Yamamoto
mesh_terms: D019264:Adoptive Transfer; D000818:Animals; D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing / Q000097:blood; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology; D002415:Cats; D016181:Feline Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000276:immunology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I / Q000276:immunology; D007111:Immunity, Cellular; D016089:Immunodeficiency Virus, Feline; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000276:immunology; D007376:Interleukin-2 / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D014611:Vaccination / Q000662:veterinary*; D014765:Viral Vaccines / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D057134:Antibodies, Neutralizing; D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D015395:Histocompatibility Antigens Class I; D007376:Interleukin-2; D014765:Viral Vaccines; C059600:feline leukocyte antigen; D007371:Interferon-gamma
keywords: Adoptive transfer; Feline immunodeficiency virus; T cell immunity; Vaccine