Type I interferons regulate eomesodermin expression and the development of unconventional memory CD8+ T cells

作者：Valérie Martinet, Sandrine Tonon, David Torres, Abdulkader Azouz, Muriel Nguyen, Arnaud Köhler, Véronique Flamand, Chai‐An Mao, William H. Klein, Oberdan Léo, Stanislas Goriely · 发表于：Nature Communications · 年份：2015 · DOI：10.1038/ncomms8089 · 被引用次数：95 · 研究领域：T-cell and B-cell Immunology、Immune Cell Function and Interaction、Immunotherapy and Immune Responses

CD8(+) T-cell memory phenotype and function are acquired after antigen-driven activation. Memory-like cells may also arise in absence of antigenic exposure in the thymus or in the periphery. Eomesodermin (Eomes) is a key transcription factor for the development of these unconventional memory cells. Herein, we show that type I interferon signalling in CD8(+) T cells directly activates Eomes gene expression. Consistent with this observation, the phenotype, function and age-dependent expansion of 'virtual memory' CD8(+) T cells are strongly affected in absence of type I interferon signalling. In addition, type I interferons induce a sustained expansion of 'virtual memory' CD8(+) T cells in an Eomes-dependent fashion. We further show that the development of 'innate thymic' CD8(+) T cells is dependent on the same pathway. In conclusion, we demonstrate that type I interferon signalling in CD8(+) T cells drives Eomes expression and thereby regulates the function and homeostasis of memory-like CD8(+) T cells.