Th1-Biased Hepatitis C Virus-Specific Follicular T Helper-Like Cells Effectively Support B Cells After Antiviral Therapy.

ABSTRACT: Circulating Th1-biased follicular T helper (cTfh1) cells have been associated with antibody responses to viral infection and after vaccination but their B cell helper functionality is less understood. After viral elimination, Tfh1 cells are the dominant subset within circulating Hepatitis C Virus (HCV)-specific CD4 T cells, but their functional capacity is currently unknown. To address this important point, we established a clone-based system to evaluate CD4 T cell functionality in vitro to overcome experimental limitations associated with their low frequencies. Specifically, we analyzed the transcription factor expression, cytokine secretion and B cell help in co-culture assays of HCV- (n = 18) and influenza-specific CD4 T cell clones (n = 5) in comparison to Tfh (n = 26) and Th1 c

SUBMITTER: Zoldan K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8514946 | biostudies-literature | 2021

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature