Dendritic cells (DCs) play a central role in initiating immune responses. Despite this, there is little understanding how different DC subsets contribute to immunity to different pathogens. CD8alpha(+) DC have been shown to prime immunity to HSV. Whether this very limited capacity of a single DC subset priming CTL immunity is restricted to HSV infection or is a more general property of anti-viral immunity was examined. Here, we show that the CD8alpha(+) DCs are the principal DC subset that initiates CTL immunity to s.c. infection by influenza virus, HSV, and vaccinia virus. This same subset also dominated immunity after i.v. infection with all three viruses, suggesting a similar involvement in other routes of infection. These data highlight the general role played by CD8alpha(+) DCs in CTL priming to viral infection and raises the possibility that this DC subset is specialized for viral immunity.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Keywords:	cytotoxic T cells; dendritic cells; generation of cell-mediated immunity
Research Division:	Biomedical and Clinical Sciences
Research Group:	Immunology
Research Field:	Cellular immunology
Objective Division:	Health
Objective Group:	Clinical health
Objective Field:	Prevention of human diseases and conditions
UTAS Author:	Karupiah, G (Associate Professor Guna Karupiah)
ID Code:	142829
Year Published:	2004
Web of Science® Times Cited:	244
Deposited By:	Medicine
Deposited On:	2021-02-12
Last Modified:	2021-11-16
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