Nature Immunology3, 918 - 925 (2002)
Published online: 23 September 2002; | doi:10.1038/ni843
Molecular anatomy of antigen-specific CD8+ T cell engagement and synapse formation in vivo
Dorian B. McGavern1, Urs Christen1, 2
& Michael B.A. Oldstone1
1
Division of Virology, Department of Neuropharmacology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA.
2
Present address: Department of Immune Regulation, La Jolla Institute of Allergy and Immunology, San Diego, CA 92121, USA.
Correspondence should be addressed to Dorian B. McGavern mcgad@scripps.edu
Antigen-specific CD8+ T cells are required for the clearance of most viral infections and several cancers. However, it is not clear in vivo whether CD8+ T cells can engage multiple targets simultaneously, engagement results in the formation of an immunologic synapse or molecules involved in CD8 function are redistributed to the synapse. We used here high-resolution microscopy to visualize interactions between virus-specific effectors and target cells in vivo. Using either in situ tetramer staining or green fluorescent protein−labeled virus-specific T cells, we have shown that a single CD8+ T cell can engage two or three targets, a synapse occurs at the site of engagement and molecules involved in attachment (lymphocyte function−associated antigen 1), signaling (Lck) and lytic activity (perforin) are differentially positioned on the T cell. In addition, we have established an in vivo approach for assessing the intricacies of antigen-specific T cell activation, migration, engagement, memory and other defining elements of adaptive immunity.
