A reservoir of stem-like CD8⁺ T cells in the tumor-draining lymph node preserves the ongoing antitumor immune response.

ABSTRACT: “Stem-like” TCF1⁺ CD8⁺ T (T_SL) cells are necessary for long-term maintenance of T cell responses and the efficacy of immunotherapy, but, as tumors contain signals that should drive T cell terminal differentiation, how these cells are maintained in tumors remains unclear. In this study, we found that a small number of TCF1⁺ tumor-specific CD8⁺ T cells were present in lung tumors throughout their development. Yet, most intratumoral T cells differentiated as tumors progressed, corresponding with an immunologic shift in the tumor microenvironment (TME) from “hot” (T cell inflamed) to “cold” (non–T cell inflamed). By contrast, most tumor-specific CD8⁺ T cells in tumor-draining lymph nodes (dLNs) had functions and gene expression

SUBMITTER: Connolly KA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8593910 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature