Normal CD4 T-cell receptor repertoire in tonsillar tissue despite perturbed repertoire in peripheral blood in HIV-1 infected individuals.

OBJECTIVE

To compare the T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire of T-cell subsets in peripheral blood and lymphoid tissue from HIV-1 infected individuals.

DESIGN

Biopsies of tonsillar tissue and samples of peripheral blood were obtained from 10, mostly treatment-naive, HIV-1-infected individuals. CD4 and CD8 T-cell subsets were quantified, the TCR repertoire was analysed within 'naive' and 'memory' subsets, and results compared between identical subsets in tonsillar tissue and blood.

METHODS

Cell subsets were quantified by flow cytometry. CD4 T cells and CD8 T cells were isolated by immunomagnetic beads. Populations were in most cases further subdivided by immunomagnetic selection on the basis of CD45RO expression. TCR repertoire was studied by spectratyping of the TCR beta variable (BV) complementarity determining region 3 (CDR3) transcripts.

RESULTS

Amongst CD4 T cells, an abnormal TCR repertoire was found in median 25% (range, 0-88%) of BV families in peripheral blood, but in 0% (0-7%) in tonsillar tissue (P<0.05). Large peaks suggestive of expanded clones were common within CD8 T-cells, both in peripheral blood and tonsillar tissue. However, the expanded clones were rarely identical in the two compartments. Expanded CDR3 peaks, suggesting the presence of clonally expanded cells, were observed within both CD45RO+ and CD45RO- cells from all T-cell subsets, but, again they were mainly of different lengths.

CONCLUSION

CD4 T cells were preserved in number and TCR repertoire in tonsillar tissue compared with blood in HIV-1 infected individuals. T-cells collected from the peripheral blood may not be representative of those residing in lymphoid tissue.