CD4⁺ T Follicular Helper Cells in Human Tonsils and Blood Are Clonally Convergent but Divergent from Non-Tfh CD4⁺ Cells.

ABSTRACT: T follicular helper (Tfh) cells are fundamental for B cell selection and antibody maturation in germinal centers. Circulating Tfh (cTfh) cells constitute a minor proportion of the CD4⁺ T cells in peripheral blood, but their clonotypic relationship to Tfh populations resident in lymph nodes and the extent to which they differ from non-Tfh CD4⁺ cells have been unclear. Using donor-matched blood and tonsil samples, we investigate T cell receptor (TCR) sharing between tonsillar Tfh cells and peripheral Tfh and non-Tfh cell populations. TCR transcript sequencing reveals considerable clonal overlap between peripheral and tonsillar Tfh cell subsets as well as a clear distinction between Tfh and non-Tfh cells. Furthermore, influenza-specific cTfh cell clones derived from bloo

SUBMITTER: Brenna E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7029615 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature