Concomitant immunity to M. tuberculosis infection.

Sci Rep

Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, G045W NCRC B28, 2800 Plymouth Rd, Ann Arbor, MI, 48109-2136, USA.

Published: December 2022

Some persistent infections provide a level of immunity that protects against reinfection with the same pathogen, a process referred to as concomitant immunity. To explore the phenomenon of concomitant immunity during Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection, we utilized HostSim, a previously published virtual host model of the immune response following Mtb infection. By simulating reinfection scenarios and comparing with data from non-human primate studies, we propose a hypothesis that the durability of a concomitant immune response against Mtb is intrinsically tied to levels of tissue resident memory T cells (Trms) during primary infection, with a secondary but important role for circulating Mtb-specific T cells. Further, we compare HostSim reinfection experiments to observational TB studies from the pre-antibiotic era to predict that the upper bound of the lifespan of resident memory T cells in human lung tissue is likely 2-3 years. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first estimate of resident memory T-cell lifespan in humans. Our findings are a first step towards demonstrating the important role of Trms in preventing disease and suggest that the induction of lung Trms is likely critical for vaccine success.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9713124PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-24516-8DOI Listing

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