Role of CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in clearance of primary pulmonary infection with Coxiella burnetii.

The mechanisms of the primary adaptive immune response to Coxiella burnetii are not well known. Following inoculation of the lungs with C. burnetii Nine Mile phase I (NMI), SCID mice developed pneumonia and splenomegaly and succumbed to infection, whereas wild-type mice cleared the infection by 24 days. SCID mice reconstituted with either CD4+ T cells or CD8+ T cells alone were able to control the infection, indicating that the presence of either type of T cells was sufficient to control infection, and B cells were not necessary for primary immunity. Similarly, wild-type mice depleted of either CD4+ T cells or CD8+ T cells controlled infections in their lungs, but these mice were highly susceptible if they were depleted of both types of T cells. However, compared to CD4+ T-cell-dependent protection, CD8+ T-cell-dependent protection resulted in less inflammation in the lungs and less growth of bacteria in the spleens.