Effects of in vivo CD8(+) T cell depletion on virus replication in rhesus macaques immunized with a live, attenuated simian immunodeficiency virus vaccine
Kj. Metzner et al., Effects of in vivo CD8(+) T cell depletion on virus replication in rhesus macaques immunized with a live, attenuated simian immunodeficiency virus vaccine, J EXP MED, 191(11), 2000, pp. 1921-1931
The role of CD8(+) T lymphocytes in controlling replication of live, attenu
ated simian immnunodeficiency virus (SIV) was investigated as part of a vac
cine study to examine the correlates of protection in the SIV/rhesus macaqu
e model. Rhesus macaques immunized for >2 yr with nef-deleted SIV (SIVmac23
9 Delta nef) and protected from challenge with pathogenic SIVmac251 were tr
eated with anti-CD8 antibody (OKT8F) to deplete CD8(+) T cells in vivo. The
effects of CD8 depletion on viral load were measured using a novel quantit
ative assay based on real-time polymerase chain reaction using molecular be
acons. This assay allows simultaneous detection of both the vaccine strain
and the challenge virus in the same sample, enabling direct quantification
of changes in each viral population. Our results show that CD8(+) T cells w
ere depleted within 1 h after administration of OKT8F, and were reduced by
as much as 99% in the peripheral blood. CD8(+) T cell depletion was associa
ted with a 1-2 log increase in SIVmac239 Delta nef plasma viremia. Control
of SIVmac239 Delta nef replication was temporally associated with the recov
ery of CD8(+) T cells between days 8 and 10. The challenge virus, SIVmac251
, was not detectable in either the plasma or lymph nodes after depletion of
CD8(+) T cells. Overall, our results indicate that CD8(+) T cells play an
important role in controlling replication of live, attenuated SIV in vivo.