HIV specific CD8⁺ T_RM-like cells in tonsils express exhaustive signatures in the absence of natural HIV control.

ABSTRACT: Lymphoid tissues are an important HIV reservoir site that persists in the face of antiretroviral therapy and natural immunity. Targeting these reservoirs by harnessing the antiviral activity of local tissue-resident memory (T_RM) CD8⁺ T-cells is of great interest, but limited data exist on T_RM-like cells within lymph nodes of people living with HIV (PLWH). Here, we studied tonsil CD8⁺ T-cells obtained from PLWH and uninfected controls from South Africa. We show that these cells are preferentially located outside the germinal centers (GCs), the main reservoir site for HIV, and display a low cytolytic and a transcriptionally T_RM-like profile distinct from blood CD8⁺ T-cells. In PLWH, CD8⁺ T_RM-like cells ar

SUBMITTER: Fardoos R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9623418 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature