Staphylococcal enterotoxin B-activated T cells can be redirected to inhibit multicycle virus replication.

Cell-mediated immunity is a crucial part of recovery from virus infections. Adoptive transfer of T cells into infected animals is restricted by the need for Ag-specific and MHC-restricted T cells. One way to overcome these limitations is to use bifunctional Abs to redirect the T cells against virus-infected cells. We have demonstrated that bifunctional Abs can inhibit virus replication in the presence of activated T cells. To generate a large number of activated T cells in a short time, we tested the ability of the superantigen, staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB), to activate T cells. We demonstrate that SEB-activated T cells are effective killers when bridged to Fc receptor-bearing target cells using anti-CD3 Abs. SEB T cells can lyse virus-infected target cells in the presence of HHA6, a bifunctional Ab specific for the V beta 8 TCR product and the H1 hemagglutinin of influenza A/PR/8/34 virus. In addition, bifunctional Ab and SEB T cells can inhibit multicycle virus replication in vitro. In a conventional 4-h chromium release assay, SEB-activated CD8 T cells are efficient killers, whereas CD4 T cells are not. Yet both subpopulations have the ability to inhibit multicycle replication in vitro. Superantigens may represent a potent method for generation of effector cells for use in redirected immunotherapy protocols.