Acute neonatal infections 'lock-in' a suboptimal CD8+ T cell repertoire with impaired recall responses.

ABSTRACT: Microbial infection during various stages of human development produces widely different clinical outcomes, yet the links between age-related changes in the immune compartment and functional immunity remain unclear. The ability of the immune system to respond to specific antigens and mediate protection in early life is closely correlated with the level of diversification of lymphocyte antigen receptors. We have previously shown that the neonatal primary CD8+ T cell response to replication competent virus is significantly constricted compared to the adult response. In the present study, we have analyzed the subsequent formation of neonatal memory CD8+ T cells and their response to secondary infectious challenge. In particular, we asked whether the less diverse CD8+ T cell clonotypes that ar

SUBMITTER: Rudd BD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3771883 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature