By Bhavana KunkalikarFeb 27 2023Reviewed by Danielle Ellis, B.Sc. In a recent study published in Nature Cardiovascular Research, researchers assessed T-cell tolerance checkpoints observed in atherosclerosis.
About the study In the present study, researchers investigated tolerance checkpoints detected in atherosclerotic plaques, lymph nodes, and tertiary lymphoid organs in mice with advanced atherosclerosis. Furthermore, the researchers analyzed the expression of S1pr1 along with activation- and cytokine-related genes in naive CD8+ T lymphocytes in the blood.
The team also validated the rise of CD4+ Tem and CD8+ Tem cells present in ATLOs compared to Apoe-/- secondary lymphoid organs using flow cytometry. Notably, plaques displayed a lower proportion of naive CD4+ /CD8+ T cells and a higher proportion of CD8+ Tem cells than SLOs. Therefore, a distinct disease-related and tissue-specific T-cell composition was observed.
Blood nave CD8+ T cells exhibited greater S100a6 and Ccl5 levels in Apoe-/- mice than in WT mice, indicating the presence of partially activated nave CD8+ T cells in the circulation of Apoe-/- mice. Plaque-naive CD8+ T cells had elevated messenger RNA levels of Ccl5 and S100a6. Notably, there was no discernible change in the expression of these transcripts across ATLO RLNs, Apoe-/- RLNs, and WT RLNs.