| First Author | Intlekofer AM | Year | 2007 |
| Journal | J Exp Med | Volume | 204 |
| Issue | 9 | Pages | 2015-21 |
| PubMed ID | 17698591 | Mgi Jnum | J:126087 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3760493 | Doi | 10.1084/jem.20070841 |
| Citation | Intlekofer AM, et al. (2007) Requirement for T-bet in the aberrant differentiation of unhelped memory CD8+ T cells. J Exp Med 204(9):2015-21 |
| abstractText | Immunity to intracellular pathogens requires dynamic balance between terminal differentiation of short-lived, cytotoxic effector CD8+ T cells and self-renewal of central-memory CD8+ T cells. We now show that T-bet represses transcription of IL-7Ralpha and drives differentiation of effector and effector-memory CD8+ T cells at the expense of central-memory cells. We also found T-bet to be overexpressed in CD8+ T cells that differentiated in the absence of CD4+ T cell help, a condition that is associated with defective central-memory formation. Finally, deletion of T-bet corrected the abnormal phenotypic and functional properties of 'unhelped' memory CD8+ T cells. T-bet, thus, appears to function as a molecular switch between central- and effector-memory cell differentiation. Antagonism of T-bet may, therefore, represent a novel strategy to offset dysfunctional programming of memory CD8+ T cells. |
