Mass cytometry reveals single-cell kinetics of cytotoxic lymphocyte evolution in CMV-infected renal transplant patients

Abstract

Significance Memory-like NK cells (NKG2C + CD57 + FcεRIγ – ) are established during CMV infection. Here, mass cytometry tracked the in vivo kinetics of CMV-induced memory NK cells generation and identified a unique subset of NKG2C + CD57 + FcεRIγ low–dim as potentially prememory-like NK cells in CMV-infected kidney transplant patients. The study demonstrated that prememory-like NK cells with a high cytotoxic profile proliferate along with accumulation of new memory-like NK cells, whereas preexisting memory-like NK cells decreased in the peripheral blood after transplantation. Moreover, NKG2C + CD8 + T cells and cytotoxic γδ T cells also expand during CMV infection. This interplay of three different cytotoxic lymphocytes demonstrates a combinatorial immune response against CMV infection, which may contribute to preventing CMV-associated complication in organ transplantation.