Role of CD8⁺ T-cell immunity in influenza infection: potential use in future vaccine development

Abstract

Continued circulation of the highly pathogenic avian H5N1 influenza A virus has many people worried that an influenza pandemic is imminent. Compounding this is the realization that H5N1 vaccines based on current influenza vaccine technology (designed to generate protective antibody responses) may be suboptimal at providing protection. As a consequence, there is recent interest in vaccine strategies that elicit cellular immunity, particularly the cytotoxic T lymphocyte response, in an effort to provide protection against a potential pandemic. A major issue is the lack of information about the precise role that these ‘hitmen’ of the immune system have in protecting against both pandemic and seasonal influenza. We need to know more about how the induction and maintenance of cytotoxic T lymphocytes after influenza infection can impact protection from further infection. The challenge is then to use this information in the design of vaccines that will protect against pandemic influenza and will help optimize CD8⁺ killer T-cell responses in other infections.

Keywords::

• CTL
• cytotoxic T cell
• immunological memory
• influenza A
• pandemic
• vaccination

Financial & competing interests disclosure

This work was supported by grant funding awarded by the Australian National and Health and Medical Research Council, an NHMRC career development fellowship (awarded to Nicole La Gruta) and a Pfizer Senior Research Fellowship (awarded to Stephen J Turner). The Melbourne WHO Collaborating Centre for Reference and Research on Influenza is supported by the Australian Government Department of Health and Ageing. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.