Background: The induction of de novo CD8 + T-cell responses is essential for protective antiviral immunity, but this process is often impaired in people with HIV-1 (PWH). We investigated the extent to which the immune competence of naive CD8 + T cells, a key determinant of priming efficacy, could be preserved or restored in PWH via long-term antiretroviral therapy (ART).
Methods: We used flow cytometry, molecular analyses of gene transcription and telomere length, and a fully validated priming assay to characterize naive CD8 + T cells ex vivo and evaluate the induction of antigen-specific effector/memory CD8 + T cells in vitro , comparing age-matched healthy uninfected donors (HUDs), PWH on ART, and natural HIV-1 controllers (HICs).
Objective: To better understand the immune microenvironment of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinomas (PDACs), here we explored the relevance of T and B cell compartmentalisation into tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) for the generation of local antitumour immunity.
Design: We characterised the functional states and spatial organisation of PDAC-infiltrating T and B cells using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), flow cytometry, multicolour immunofluorescence, gene expression profiling of microdissected TLSs, as well as in vitro assays. In addition, we performed a pan-cancer analysis of tumour-infiltrating T cells using scRNA-seq and sc T cell receptor sequencing datasets from eight cancer types.
Background: CD8 T cells equipped with a full arsenal of antiviral effector functions are critical for effective immune control of HIV-1. It has nonetheless remained unclear how best to elicit such potent cellular immune responses in the context of immunotherapy or vaccination. HIV-2 has been associated with milder disease manifestations and more commonly elicits functionally replete virus-specific CD8 T cell responses compared with HIV-1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPathogen recognition receptor (PRR) agonists are currently being developed and tested as adjuvants in various formulations to optimize the immunogenicity and efficacy of vaccines. Using an original in vitro approach to prime naive precursors from unfractionated human peripheral blood mononuclear cells, we assessed the influence of cyclic guanosine monophosphate-adenosine monophosphate (cGAMP), a ligand for the stimulator of interferon genes (STING), on the induction of antigen-specific CD8+ T cells. We found that 2'3'-cGAMP and 3'3'-cGAMP were especially potent adjuvants in this system, driving the expansion and maturation of functionally replete antigen-specific CD8+ T cells via the induction of type I IFNs.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCharacterization of the intracellular biochemical processes that regulate the generation and maintenance of effector and memory CD8 T-cells from naïve precursors is essential for our understanding of adaptive immune responses and the development of immunotherapies. However, the metabolic determinants of antigen-driven activation and differentiation remain poorly defined, especially in humans. We used a variety of different approaches, including gene expression profiling and measurements of nutrient flux, to characterize the basal and activation-induced energetic requirements of naïve and phenotypically-defined subsets of human memory CD8 T-cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAs key cells, able to host and kill parasites, inflammatory monocytes/macrophages are potential vaccine and therapeutic targets to improve immune responses in Leishmaniasis. Macrophage phenotypes range from M1, which express NO-mediated microbial killing, to M2 macrophages that might help infection. Resistance to Leishmaniasis depends on species, mouse strain, and both innate and adaptive immunity.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInflammatory chronic pathologies are complex processes characterized by an imbalance between the resolution of the inflammatory phase and the establishment of tissue repair. The main players in these inflammatory pathologies are bone marrow derived monocytes (BMDMs). However, how monocyte differentiation is modulated to give rise to specific macrophage subpopulations (M1 or M2) that may either maintain the chronic inflammatory process or lead to wound healing is still unclear.
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