Ligand-independent exhaustion of killer immunoglobulin-like receptor-positive CD8+ T Cells in human immunodeficiency virus Type 1 infection

Alter, G. et al. (2008) Ligand-independent exhaustion of killer immunoglobulin-like receptor-positive CD8+ T Cells in human immunodeficiency virus Type 1 infection. Journal of Virology, 82(19), pp. 9668-9677. (doi: 10.1128/JVI.00341-08) (PMID:18579582) (PMCID:PMC2546972)

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Abstract

Virus-specific CD8+ T cells play a central role in the control of viral infections, including human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) infection. However, despite the presence of strong and broad HIV-specific CD8+ T-cell responses in chronic HIV-1 infection, these cells progressively lose critical effector functions and fail to clear the infection. Mounting evidence suggests that the upregulation of several inhibitory regulatory receptors on the surface of CD8+ T cells during HIV-1 infection may contribute directly to the impairment of T-cell function. Here, we investigated the role of killer immunoglobulin receptors (KIR), which are expressed on NK cells and on CD8+ T cells, in regulating CD8+ T-cell function in HIV-1 infection. KIR expression was progressively upregulated on CD8+ T cells during HIV-1 infection and correlated with the level of viral replication. Expression of KIR was associated with a profound inhibition of cytokine secretion, degranulation, proliferation, and activation by CD8+ T cells following stimulation with T-cell receptor (TCR)-dependent stimuli. In contrast, KIR+ CD8+ T cells responded potently to TCR-independent stimulation, demonstrating that these cells are functionally competent. KIR-associated suppression of CD8+ T-cell function was independent of ligand engagement, suggesting that these regulatory receptors may constitutively repress TCR activation. This ligand-independent repression of TCR activation of KIR+ CD8+ T cells may represent a significant barrier to therapeutic interventions aimed at improving the quality of the HIV-specific CD8+ T-cell response in infected individuals.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Rihn, Dr Suzannah
Authors: Alter, G., Rihn, S., Streeck, H., Teigen, N., Piechocka-Trocha, A., Moss, K., Cohen, K., Meier, A., Pereyra, F., Walker, B., and Altfeld, M.
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity
College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Infection & Immunity > Centre for Virus Research
Journal Name:Journal of Virology
Publisher:American Society for Microbiology
ISSN:0022-538X
ISSN (Online):1098-5514)

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