B Cells Drive Antigen-Independent CD8 T Cell Activation in Viral Immunity and Aging
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Eui-Cheol Shin presents work on a non-antigen-specific route of T cell activation: B cells mediate bystander activation of CD8 T cells, in which T cells are stimulated without recognition of their cognate antigen. The talk, delivered as an expert commentary, situates this mechanism in two settings: antiviral immune responses and immunosenescence, the age-related decline of immune function. In viral infection, bystander activation may expand CD8 T cell pools beyond what antigen-specific stimulation alone would produce, while in aging it offers a framework for the chronic, low-grade T cell activation seen in older individuals. The discussion is part of an ongoing expert-led series; the underlying mechanisms and their consequences for immunity remain open questions.
Written by a model from the reports · updated 3 hours ago
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- YouTubeB Cell-Mediated Bystander CD8 T Cell Activation in Viral Immunity and Immunosenescence
T cells can be activated by B cells in an antigen-independent, TCR-independent manner, first reported by Sprent's group in 1996 in mouse infection models and later confirmed in human infections including HCV, HBV, EBV, HIV, and influenza. In livers from acute HIV-infected patients in Korea, 98% of intrahepatic HIV-specific CD8 T cells were activated and 94% were CD38/HLA-DR double positive. The same bystander mechanism occurs in chronic HBV infection and in alopecia areata mouse models, and transcriptomic analysis of bystander memory CD8 T cells in HBV infection shows upregulation of B cell activation gene sets, indicating B-T interactions shape their transcriptional profile.
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