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Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Epitope–Specific CD4 + T Cells Are Inflated in HIV + CMV + Subjects
Journal article   Peer reviewed

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Epitope–Specific CD4 + T Cells Are Inflated in HIV + CMV + Subjects

C.O. Abana, M.A. Pilkinton, S. Gaudieri, A. Chopra, W.J. McDonnell, C. Wanjalla, L. Barnett, R. Gangula, C. Hager, D.K. Jung, …
The Journal of Immunology, Vol.199(9), pp.3187-3201
2017
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Abstract

Select CMV epitopes drive life-long CD8+ T cell memory inflation, but the extent of CD4 memory inflation is poorly studied. CD4+ T cells specific for human CMV (HCMV) are elevated in HIV+ HCMV+ subjects. To determine whether HCMV epitope–specific CD4+ T cell memory inflation occurs during HIV infection, we used HLA-DR7 (DRB1*07:01) tetramers loaded with the glycoprotein B DYSNTHSTRYV (DYS) epitope to characterize circulating CD4+ T cells in coinfected HLA-DR7+ long-term nonprogressor HIV subjects with undetectable HCMV plasma viremia. DYS-specific CD4+ T cells were inflated among these HIV+ subjects compared with those from an HIV− HCMV+ HLA-DR7+ cohort or with HLA-DR7–restricted CD4+ T cells from the HIV-coinfected cohort that were specific for epitopes of HCMV phosphoprotein-65, tetanus toxoid precursor, EBV nuclear Ag 2, or HIV gag protein. Inflated DYS-specific CD4+ T cells consisted of effector memory or effector memory–RA+ subsets with restricted TCRβ usage and nearly monoclonal CDR3 containing novel conserved amino acids. Expression of this near-monoclonal TCR in a Jurkat cell–transfection system validated fine DYS specificity. Inflated cells were polyfunctional, not senescent, and displayed high ex vivo levels of granzyme B, CX3CR1, CD38, or HLA-DR but less often coexpressed CD38+ and HLA-DR+. The inflation mechanism did not involve apoptosis suppression, increased proliferation, or HIV gag cross-reactivity. Instead, the findings suggest that intermittent or chronic expression of epitopes, such as DYS, drive inflation of activated CD4+ T cells that home to endothelial cells and have the potential to mediate cytotoxicity and vascular disease.

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
International collaboration
Citation topics
1 Clinical & Life Sciences
1.161 Virology - Identification & Sequencing
1.161.711 Cytomegalovirus Infections
Web Of Science research areas
Immunology
ESI research areas
Immunology
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