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Fernández-Soto D, García-Jiménez ÁF, Casasnovas JM, Valés-Gómez M, Reyburn HT. Elevated levels of cell-free NKG2D-ligands modulate NKG2D surface expression and compromise NK cell function in severe COVID-19 disease. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1273942. [PMID: 38410511 PMCID: PMC10895954 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1273942] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction It is now clear that coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) severity is associated with a dysregulated immune response, but the relative contributions of different immune cells is still not fully understood. SARS CoV-2 infection triggers marked changes in NK cell populations, but there are contradictory reports as to whether these effector lymphocytes play a protective or pathogenic role in immunity to SARS-CoV-2. Methods To address this question we have analysed differences in the phenotype and function of NK cells in SARS-CoV-2 infected individuals who developed either very mild, or life-threatening COVID-19 disease. Results Although NK cells from patients with severe disease appeared more activated and the frequency of adaptive NK cells was increased, they were less potent mediators of ADCC than NK cells from patients with mild disease. Further analysis of peripheral blood NK cells in these patients revealed that a population of NK cells that had lost expression of the activating receptor NKG2D were a feature of patients with severe disease and this correlated with elevated levels of cell free NKG2D ligands, especially ULBP2 and ULBP3 in the plasma of critically ill patients. In vitro, culture in NKG2DL containing patient sera reduced the ADCC function of healthy donor NK cells and this could be blocked by NKG2DL-specific antibodies. Discussion These observations of reduced NK function in severe disease are consistent with the hypothesis that defects in immune surveillance by NK cells permit higher levels of viral replication, rather than that aberrant NK cell function contributes to immune system dysregulation and immunopathogenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Fernández-Soto
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Álvaro F. García-Jiménez
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - José M. Casasnovas
- Department of Macromolecular Structures, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Mar Valés-Gómez
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Hugh T. Reyburn
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology (CNB), Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
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Esteso G, Felgueres MJ, García-Jiménez ÁF, Reyburn-Valés C, Benguría A, Vázquez E, Reyburn HT, Aguiló N, Martín C, Puentes E, Murillo I, Rodríguez E, Valés-Gómez M. BCG-activation of leukocytes is sufficient for the generation of donor-independent innate anti-tumor NK and γδ T-cells that can be further expanded in vitro. Oncoimmunology 2022; 12:2160094. [PMID: 36567803 PMCID: PMC9788708 DOI: 10.1080/2162402x.2022.2160094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG), the nonpathogenic Mycobacterium bovis strain used as tuberculosis vaccine, has been successfully used as treatment for non-muscle invasive bladder cancer for decades, and suggested to potentiate cellular and humoral immune responses. However, the exact mechanism of action is not fully understood. We previously described that BCG mainly activated anti-tumor cytotoxic NK cells with upregulation of CD56 and a CD16+ phenotype. Now, we show that stimulation of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells with iBCG, a preparation based on BCG-Moreau, expands oligoclonal γδ T-cells, with a cytotoxic phenotype, together with anti-tumor CD56high CD16+ NK cells. We have used scRNA-seq, flow cytometry, and functional assays to characterize these BCG-activated γδ T-cells in detail. They had a high IFNγ secretion signature with expression of CD27+ and formed conjugates with bladder cancer cells. BCG-activated γδ T-cells proliferated strongly in response to minimal doses of cytokines and had anti-tumor functions, although not fully based on degranulation. BCG was sufficient to stimulate proliferation of γδ T-cells when cultured with other PBMC; however, BCG alone did not stimulate expansion of purified γδ T-cells. The characterization of these non-donor restricted lymphocyte populations, which can be expanded in vitro, could provide a new approach to prepare cell-based immunotherapy tools.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gloria Esteso
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - María José Felgueres
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - Álvaro F. García-Jiménez
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - Christina Reyburn-Valés
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - Alberto Benguría
- Servicio de Genómica, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Enrique Vázquez
- Servicio de Genómica, Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares (CNIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Hugh T. Reyburn
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
| | - Nacho Aguiló
- Grupo de Genética de Micobacterias, Departamento de Microbiología y Medicina Preventiva, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Zaragoza, IIS-Aragon; Zaragoza, Spain and CIBER Enfermedades Respiratorias, Instituto de Salud Carlos III; Madrid, Spain
| | - Carlos Martín
- Grupo de Genética de Micobacterias, Departamento de Microbiología y Medicina Preventiva, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Zaragoza, IIS-Aragon; Zaragoza, Spain and CIBER Enfermedades Respiratorias, Instituto de Salud Carlos III; Madrid, Spain,Servicio de Microbiología, Hospital Universitario Miguel Servet, IIS Aragon; Zaragoza, Spain
| | - Eugenia Puentes
- Clinical Research Department y Research & Development Department, Biofabri, Grupo Zendal, O’Porriño, Pontevedra, Spain
| | - Ingrid Murillo
- Clinical Research Department y Research & Development Department, Biofabri, Grupo Zendal, O’Porriño, Pontevedra, Spain
| | - Esteban Rodríguez
- Clinical Research Department y Research & Development Department, Biofabri, Grupo Zendal, O’Porriño, Pontevedra, Spain
| | - Mar Valés-Gómez
- Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain,CONTACT Mar Valés-Gómez Department of Immunology and Oncology, National Centre for Biotechnology, Spanish National Research Council, Madrid, Spain
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