Herpesvirus saimiri-transformed CD8+ T cells as a tool to study Chediak-Higashi syndrome cytolytic lymphocytes.

Cytolytic CD8+ T lymphocytes are the main cell type involved in the fatal lymphoproliferative-accelerated phase of the Chediak-Higashi syndrome (CHS). To generate a cellular tool to study the defects of this T cell subset in vitro, we have used Herpesvirus saimiri, a lymphotropic virus that transforms human T lymphocytes into extended growth and in addition, endows them with natural killer (NK) features. Transformed CHS CD8+ T cells were generated and characterized in comparison with healthy controls.