(15) Both CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes are associated with protection against CMV infection with a complex interaction involving a
CD8+ T cell response producing IFN-y as well as a number of other cytokines in response to the CMV virus.
The mTOR kinase determines effector versus memory
CD8+ T cell fate by regulating the expression of transcription factors T-bet and eomesodermin.
Compared with normal chow diet-fed mice, the high-fat diet mice showed worsened blood sugar, increased triglycerides, a type of fat (lipid) in the blood, and a substantial increase in the numbers of
CD8+ T cells in the liver.
It is therefore possible that STAT4-deficiency may be protective by reducing the costimulatory effects of CD40 on
CD8+ T cells. Future studies will help to address further details of the molecular mechanisms responsible for STAT4 involvement in the pathogenic role of CD8+ cells in adipose tissue inflammation and insulin resistance.
Type 17
CD8+ T cells display enhanced antitumor immunity.
Females have lower levels of
CD8+ T cells and higher CD4/CD8 ratios than males, due to the effects of estrogen.
Profound CD4+ T lymphocytopenia has not been reported in chronic CMV infection, although it induces alterations in the composition of T cell subsets including an increase of specific CD4+ T and
CD8+ T cells, which are more frequently CD45 RO+, CD28-, CD27- and CD57+ (2).
The most established marker of immune activation in HIV-1 infection is the expression of CD38 on
CD8+ T cells. Observations of changes in CD38 expression on CD8 T cells in HIV-1-infected patients have shown that CD8 CD38-expressing T cells give an insight into viral replication [2,7,9-12,15-16,36].
Researchers have discovered that prostate tumors in mice can cause immune cells known as
CD8+ T cells to change their function from cells that have antitumor activity to cells that suppress immune responses.
Cinnamon extract suppresses tumor progression by modulating angiogenesis and the effector function of
CD8+ T cells. Cancer Lett 278;174-82.