Human MAIT and CD8αα cells develop from a pool of type-17 precommitted CD8+ T cells.

Journal article

Human mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) CD8(+) and Tc17 cells are important tissue-homing cell populations, characterized by high expression of CD161 ((++)) and type-17 differentiation, but their origins and relationships remain poorly defined. By transcriptional and functional analyses, we demonstrate that a pool of polyclonal, precommitted type-17 CD161(++)CD8αβ(+) T cells exist in cord blood, from which a prominent MAIT cell (TCR Vα7.2(+)) population emerges post-natally. During this expansion, CD8αα T cells appear exclusively within a CD161(++)CD8(+)/MAIT subset, sharing cytokine production, chemokine-receptor expression, TCR-usage, and transcriptional profiles with their CD161(++)CD8αβ(+) counterparts. Our data demonstrate the origin and differentiation pathway of MAIT-cells from a naive type-17 precommitted CD161(++)CD8(+) T-cell pool and the distinct phenotype and function of CD8αα cells in man.

Authors: Walker, L; Kang, Y; Smith, M; Tharmalingham, H; Ramamurthy, N

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: Blood
• Volume: 119
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 422-433
• Publication date: 2012-01-01
• DOI: 10.1182/blood-2011-05-353789
• EISSN: 1528-0020
• ISSN: 0006-4971
• Language: English
• Keywords: Adult; T-Lymphocyte Subsets; RNA, Messenger; Th17 Cells; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; Fluorescent Antibody Technique; Protein Isoforms; Immunity, Mucosal; Antigens, CD8; Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell; Cytokines; Antigen Presentation; Gene Expression Profiling; Fetal Blood; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; Infant, Newborn; Cell Differentiation; Biological Markers; Blotting, Western; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes; Humans