Abstract
Cytotoxic memory T cells play a critical role in combating viral infections; however, in some diseases they may contribute to tissue damage. In HAM/TSP, HTLV-1 Tax 11-19+ cells proliferate spontaneously in vitro and can be tracked using the Tax 11-19 MHC Class I tetramer. Immediately ex vivo, these cells were a mix of CD45RA-/CCR7- TEM and CD45RA+/CCR7- TDiff memory CTL. The subsequent proliferating Tax 11-19 tetramer+ population expressed low levels of IL-7Rα, failed to respond to IL-7 and IL-15, and did not develop a TCM phenotype. Thus, chronic exposure to viral antigen may result in a sustained pool of TEM cells that home to the CNS and mediate the spinal cord pathology seen in this disease.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 115-124 |
Number of pages | 10 |
Journal | Journal of Neuroimmunology |
Volume | 176 |
Issue number | 1-2 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 2006 |
Keywords
- Cytotoxic T cells
- Memory
- Viral infection
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Immunology and Allergy
- Immunology
- Neurology
- Clinical Neurology