Genital HSV-2 infection induces short-term NK cell memory.

NK cells are known as innate immune cells that lack immunological memory. Recently, it has been shown that NK cells remember encounters with chemical haptens that induce contact hypersensitivity and cytomegalovirus infection. Here, we show the existence of NK cell memory following HSV-2 infection.

Development of functional human NK cells in an immunodeficient mouse model with the ability to provide protection against tumor challenge.

Studies of human NK cells and their role in tumor suppression have largely been restricted to in vitro experiments which lack the complexity of whole organisms, or mouse models which differ significantly from humans. In this study we showed that, in contrast to C57BL/6 Rag2(-/-)/gamma(c) (-/-) and NOD/Scid mice, newborn BALB/c Rag2(-/-)/gamma(c) (-/-) mice can support the development of human NK cells and CD56+ T cells after intrahepatic injection with hematopoietic stem cells. The human CD56(+) cells in BALB/c Rag2(-/-)/gamma(c) (-/-) mice were able to produce IFN-gamma in response to human IL-15 and polyI:C.