Biology subjects

Vincenti, I.

Publications and source records attributed to Vincenti, I..

5 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Non-cytolytic re-engineering of a viral vaccine vector enables durable effector-memory T cell immunity by reinforcing type I IFN induction

Replication-deficient viral vector systems hold promise for CD8 T cell-based vaccination, but the molecular mechanisms accounting for platform-specific differences in immunogenicity remain ill- defined. When comparing prototypic single-cycle vaccine delivery platforms we found that lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus-based vectors (rLCMV), which are non-cytolytic, elicited more durable and effector-memory-differentiated CD8 T cell responses than vectors based on cytolytic vesicular stomatitis virus (rVSV). Hence we re-engineered rVSV to be non-cytolytic (rVSVMq). This vector induced more durable and effector-differentiated CD8 T cell memory than the parental rVSV and it afforded superior protection against Listeria challenge. Improved CD8 T cell responses of non-cytolytic rVSVMq were driven by a reinforced type I interferon (IFN-I) response and its direct sensing by vaccination-induced CD8 T cells. Many vector cargo-specific CD8 T cells in the splenic marginal zone of rVSVMq- or rLCMV-vaccinated mice were in contact with vector cargo-expressing cells that co- expressed type I interferon. In contrast, rVSV-vectored cargo-expressing contacts of specific CD8 T cells were largely IFN type I-negative. Thereby, vaccination with non-cytolytic viral vectors offered an opportunity for CD8 T cells to integrate peptide-MHC and IFN-I signals during priming. These mechanistic insights should help to refine vaccines aimed at eliciting durable and protective effector- memory CD8 T cell immunity.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2024

Interleukin-33 from oligodendrocytes sustains effector differentiation of tissue-resident CD8+ T cells and is a druggable target in CNS autoimmune disease

In chronic inflammatory disorders of the central nervous system (CNS), tissue-resident self-reactive T cells perpetuate disease. The specific tissue factors governing the persistence and continuous differentiation of these cells remain undefined but could represent attractive therapeutic targets. In a model of chronic CNS autoimmunity, we find that oligodendrocyte-derived interleukin-33 (IL-33), an alarmin, is key for locally regulating the pathogenicity of self-reactive CD8+ T cells. The selective ablation of IL-33 from neo-self-antigen-expressing oligodendrocytes mitigates CNS disease. In this context, fewer self-reactive CD8+ T cells persist in the inflamed CNS, and the remaining cells are largely locked into a stem-like precursor program, failing to form TCF-1low effector progeny. Importantly, interventional IL-33 blockade by locally administered somatic gene therapy reduces T cell infiltrates and improves the disease course. Our study identifies oligodendrocyte-derived IL-33 as a druggable tissue factor regulating the differentiation and survival of self-reactive CD8+ T cell in the inflamed CNS. This finding introduces tissue factors as a novel category of immune targets for treating chronic CNS autoimmune diseases.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2022

Persistent virus-specific and clonally expanded antibody secreting cells respond to induced self antigen in the CNS

B cells contribute to the pathogenesis of both cellular- and humoral-mediated central nervous system (CNS) inflammatory diseases through a variety of mechanisms. In such conditions, B cells may enter the CNS parenchyma and contribute to local tissue destruction. It remains unexplored, however, how infection and autoimmunity drive transcriptional phenotypes, repertoire features, and antibody functionality. Here, we profiled B cells from the CNS of murine models of intracranial (i.c.) viral infections and autoimmunity. We identified a population of clonally expanded, antibody secreting cells (ASCs) that had undergone class-switch recombination and extensive somatic hypermutation following i.c. infection with attenuated lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (rLCMV). Recombinant expression and characterisation of these antibodies revealed specificity to viral antigens (LCMV glycoprotein GP), correlating with ASC persistence in the brain weeks after resolved infection. Furthermore, these virus-specific ASCs upregulated proliferation and expansion programs in response to the conditional and transient induction of the LCMV GP as a neo-self antigen by astrocytes. This class-switched, clonally expanded, and mutated population persisted and was even more pronounced when peripheral B cells were depleted prior to autoantigen induction in the CNS. In contrast, the most expanded B cell clones in mice with persistent expression of LCMV GP in the CNS did not exhibit neo-self antigen specificity, potentially a consequence of local tolerance induction. Finally, a comparable population of clonally expanded, class-switched, proliferating ASCs was detected in the cerebrospinal fluid of multiple sclerosis patients. Taken together, our findings support the existence of B cells that populate the CNS and are capable of responding to locally encountered autoantigens. Graphical abstract O_FIG_DISPLAY_L [Figure 1] M_FIG_DISPLAY C_FIG_DISPLAY

immunology↗

bioRxiv2022

Single-cell immune repertoire sequencing of B and T cells in murine models of infection and autoimmunity

Adaptive immune repertoires are composed by the ensemble of B and T cell receptors (BCR, TCR) within an individual and reflect both past and current immune responses. Recent advances in single-cell sequencing enable recovery of the complete adaptive immune receptor sequences in addition to transcriptional information. Such high-dimensional datasets enable the molecular quantification of clonal selection of B and T cells across a wide variety of conditions such as infection and disease. Due to costs, time required for the analysis and current practices of academic publishing, small-scale sequencing studies are often not made publicly available, despite having informative potential to elucidate immunological principles and guide future-studies. Here, we performed single-cell sequencing of B and T cells to profile clonal selection across murine models of viral infection and autoimmune disease. Specifically, we recovered transcriptome and immune repertoire information for polyclonal T follicular helper cells following acute and chronic viral infection, CD8+ T cells with binding specificity restricted to two distinct peptides of lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus, and B and T cells isolated from the nervous system in the context of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. We could relate repertoire features such as clonal expansion, germline gene usage, and clonal convergence to cell phenotypes spanning activation, memory, naive, antibody secretion, T cell inflation, and regulation. Together, this dataset provides a resource for experimental and computational immunologists that can be integrated with future single-cell immune repertoire and transcriptome sequencing datasets.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2020

Cold Exposure Protects from Neuroinflammation Through Immunologic Reprogramming

Autoimmunity is energetically costly, but the impact of a metabolically active state on immunity and immune-mediated diseases is unclear. Ly6Chi monocytes are key effectors in CNS autoimmunity with elusive role in priming naive autoreactive T cells. Here we provide unbiased analysis of the immune changes in various compartments during cold exposure, and show that this energetically costly stimulus markedly ameliorates active experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). Cold exposure decreases MHCII on monocytes at steady-state and in various inflammatory mouse models, and suppresses T cell priming and pathogenicity through the modulation of monocytes. Genetic, or antibody-mediated monocyte depletion, or adoptive transfer of Th1- or Th17-polarized cells for EAE abolish the cold-induced effects on T cells or EAE, respectively. These findings provide a mechanistic link between environmental temperature and neuroinflammation, and suggest competition between cold-induced metabolic adaptations and autoimmunity as energetic trade-off beneficial for the immune-mediated diseases.

immunology↗