MRNA vaccination boosts S-specific T cell memory and promotes expansion of CD45RA_int T_EMRA-like CD8⁺ T cells in COVID-19 recovered individuals.

ABSTRACT: SARS-CoV-2 infection and mRNA vaccination both elicit spike (S)-specific T cell responses. To analyze how T cell memory from prior infection influences T cell responses to vaccination, we evaluated functional T cell responses in naive and previously infected vaccine recipients. Pre-vaccine S-specific responses are predictive of subsequent CD8⁺ T cell vaccine-response magnitudes. Comparing baseline with post-vaccination TCRβ repertoires, we observed large clonotypic expansions correlated with the frequency of spike-specific T cells. Epitope mapping the largest CD8⁺ T cell responses confirms that an HLA-A∗03:01 epitope was highly immunodominant. Peptide-MHC tetramer staining together with mass cytometry and single-cell sequencing permit detailed phenotyping and clonotyp

SUBMITTER: Mayer-Blackwell K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10439252 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature