Cytotoxic control – New publication in Nature Communications

A long-standing collaboration with Prof. Edgar Serfling that was initiated in the Transregio SFB TRR52 reseach consortium comes now to fruition. Today, these research findings are being published in the prestigious journal Nature Communications.  
Cytotoxic T cells, transcriptional control, Immunology Program Würzburg, TRR52 Berlin-Mainz-Würzburg, Edgar Serfling


Cytotoxic T lymphocytes are effector CD8+ T cells that very efficiently eradicate infected and malignant cells. Our new research publication by Stefan Klein-Hessling and colleagues demonstrates that the transcription factor NFATc1 controls the cytotoxicity of mouse cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Activated cytotoxic T lymphocytes, which were deficient for Nfatc1, were also defective to organize their cytoskeleton and to recruit cytosolic organelles to immunological synapses. If CD8+ T cells lacked NFATc1, their cytotoxic potential against malignant multiple myeloma cells dramatically declined. Furthermore, mice with NFATc1-deficient T cells could not control Listeria infections.

Extensive transcriptome analysis revealed that NFATc1 controls multiple programs in cytotoxic T cells including the production of cytokines, chemokines and metabolic programs. This new comprehensive study highlights that NFATc1 is an important regulator of cytotoxic T lymphocyte effector functions.

Klein-Hessling S, Muhammad K, Pusch T, Klein M, Rudolf R, Flöter J, Qureischi M, Beilhack A, Vaeth M, Kummerow C, Backes C, Schoppmeyer R, Hahn U, Hoth M, Bopp T, Berberich-Siebelt F, Patra A, Avots A, Müller N, Schulze A, Serfling E. (2017). NFATc1 controls the cytotoxicity of CD8+ T cells at multiple levels. Nature Communications 8:511.