Nuffield Department of Medicine and NIHR Biomedical Research Centre Programme, Peter Medawar Building for Pathogen Research, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Clin Exp Immunol. 2010 Mar;159(3):245-55. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2249.2009.04047.x. Epub 2009 Dec 1.
The importance of CD8(+) T cells in the control of viral infections is well established. However, what differentiates CD8(+) T cell responses in individuals who control infection and those who do not is not well understood. 'Functional sensitivity' describes an important quality of the T cell response and is determined in part by the affinity of the T cell receptor for antigen. A more sensitive T cell response is generally believed to be more efficient and associated with better control of viral infection, yet may also drive viral mutation and immune escape. Various in vitro techniques have been used to measure T cell sensitivity; however, rapid ex vivo analysis of this has been made possible by the application of the 'magic' tetramer technology. Such tools have potentially important applications in the design and evaluation of vaccines.
CD8(+) T 细胞在控制病毒感染中的重要性已得到充分证实。然而，控制感染和不控制感染的个体之间的 CD8(+) T 细胞反应的区别尚不清楚。“功能敏感性”描述了 T 细胞反应的一个重要质量，部分取决于 T 细胞受体对抗原的亲和力。通常认为，更敏感的 T 细胞反应更有效，与更好地控制病毒感染相关，但也可能导致病毒突变和免疫逃逸。已经使用了各种体外技术来测量 T 细胞敏感性；然而，通过应用“神奇”四聚体技术，已经可以快速在体外进行这种分析。这些工具在疫苗的设计和评估中具有潜在的重要应用。
