[HTML][HTML] HCV-specific CD4+ T cells of patients with acute and chronic HCV infection display high expression of TIGIT and other co-inhibitory molecules

C Ackermann, M Smits, R Woost, JM Eberhard… - Scientific reports, 2019 - nature.com
C Ackermann, M Smits, R Woost, JM Eberhard, S Peine, S Kummer, M Marget, T Kuntzen…
Scientific reports, 2019nature.com
The combined regulation of a network of inhibitory and activating T cell receptors may be a
critical step in the development of chronic HCV infection. Ex vivo HCV MHC class I+ II
tetramer staining and bead-enrichment was performed with baseline and longitudinal PBMC
samples of a cohort of patients with acute, chronic and spontaneously resolved HCV
infection to assess the expression pattern of the co-inhibitory molecule TIGIT together with
PD-1, BTLA, Tim-3, as well as OX40 and CD226 (DNAM-1) of HCV-specific CD4+ T cells …
Abstract
The combined regulation of a network of inhibitory and activating T cell receptors may be a critical step in the development of chronic HCV infection. Ex vivo HCV MHC class I + II tetramer staining and bead-enrichment was performed with baseline and longitudinal PBMC samples of a cohort of patients with acute, chronic and spontaneously resolved HCV infection to assess the expression pattern of the co-inhibitory molecule TIGIT together with PD-1, BTLA, Tim-3, as well as OX40 and CD226 (DNAM-1) of HCV-specific CD4+ T cells, and in a subset of patients of HCV-specific CD8+ T cells. As the main result, we found a higher expression level of TIGIT+ PD-1+ on HCV-specific CD4+ T cells during acute and chronic HCV infection compared to patients with spontaneously resolved HCV infection (p < 0,0001). Conversely, expression of the complementary co-stimulatory receptor of TIGIT, CD226 (DNAM-1) was significantly decreased on HCV-specific CD4+ T cells during chronic infection. The predominant phenotype of HCV-specific CD4+ T cells during acute and chronic infection was TIGIT+, PD-1+, BTLA+, Tim-3−. This comprehensive phenotypic study confirms TIGIT together with PD-1 as a discriminatory marker of dysfunctional HCV-specific CD4+ T cells.
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