Cutting Edge: Transcriptional Profiling Reveals Multifunctional and Cytotoxic Antiviral Responses of Zika Virus-Specific CD8+ T Cells.

Zika virus (ZIKV) constitutes an increasing public health problem. Previous studies have shown that CD8+ T cells play an important role in ZIKV-specific protective immunity. We have previously defined antigenic targets of the ZIKV-specific CD8+ T cell response in humans. In this study, we characterized the quality and phenotypes of these responses by a combined use of flow cytometry and transcriptomic methods, using PBMCs from donors deriving from different geographical locations collected in the convalescent phase of infection. We show that ZIKV-specific CD8+ T cells are characterized by a polyfunctional IFN-γ signature with upregulation of TNF-α, TNF receptors, and related activation markers, such as CD69, as well as a cytotoxic signature characterized by strong upregulation of GZMB and CRTAM. The signature is stable and not influenced by previous dengue virus exposure, geographical location, or time of sample collection postinfection. To our knowledge, this work elucidates the first in-depth characterization of human CD8+ T cells responding to ZIKV infection.

Unique phenotypes and clonal expansions of human CD4 effector memory T cells re-expressing CD45RA.

The expression of CD45RA is generally associated with naive T cells. However, a subset of effector memory T cells re-expresses CD45RA (termed TEMRA) after antigenic stimulation with unknown molecular characteristics and functions. CD4 TEMRA cells have been implicated in protective immunity against pathogens such as dengue virus (DENV). Here we show that not only the frequency but also the phenotype of CD4 TEMRA cells are heterogeneous between individuals. These cells can be subdivided into two major subsets based on the expression of the adhesion G protein-coupled receptor GPR56, and GPR56+ TEMRA cells display a transcriptional and proteomic program with cytotoxic features that is distinct from effector memory T cells. Moreover, GPR56+ TEMRA cells have higher levels of clonal expansion and contain the majority of virus-specific TEMRA cells. Overall, this study reveals the heterogeneity of CD4 TEMRA cells and provides insights into T-cell responses against DENV and other viral pathogens.

Direct Probing of Germinal Center Responses Reveals Immunological Features and Bottlenecks for Neutralizing Antibody Responses to HIV Env Trimer.

Generating tier 2 HIV-neutralizing antibody (nAb) responses by immunization remains a challenging problem, and the immunological barriers to induction of such responses with Env immunogens remain unclear. Here, some rhesus monkeys developed autologous tier 2 nAbs upon HIV Env trimer immunization (SOSIP.v5.2) whereas others did not. This was not because HIV Env trimers were immunologically silent because all monkeys made similar ELISA-binding antibody responses; the key difference was nAb versus non-nAb responses. We explored the immunological barriers to HIV nAb responses by combining a suite of techniques, including longitudinal lymph node fine needle aspirates. Unexpectedly, nAb development best correlated with booster immunization GC B cell magnitude and Tfh characteristics of the Env-specific CD4 T cells. Notably, these factors distinguished between successful and unsuccessful antibody responses because GC B cell frequencies and stoichiometry to GC Tfh cells correlated with nAb development, but did not correlate with total Env Ab binding titers.