Chikungunya-virus-specific CD4⁺ T cells are associated with chronic chikungunya viral arthritic disease in humans.

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Presentation Time: 11:30 AM - 12:45 PM
Poster Board Number: B151
Abstract ID: 4257

Presenting Author:
Rimjhim Agarwal , Graduate Student at La Jolla Inst. for Immunol., UCSD

Abstract:

Chikungunya virus (CHIKV) is a mosquito-borne Alphavirus that causes recurrent outbreaks in tropical and subtropical regions of the world. In the first 2-7 days of infection, most individuals experience high fever, skin rash and joint pain and swelling. However, about 30-60% of the infected individuals, primarily middle-age females, develop debilitating chronic arthritis-like symptoms such as joint pain, muscle aches and edema. Despite ongoing treatment and vaccine development efforts, the immune responses to CHIKV in humans remain largely understudied. In this study, we tested peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) collected from a cohort of 39 individuals diagnosed with CHIKV disease during the 2014-2015 epidemic in Colombia against pools of overlapping sequentially spanning the entire CHIKV genome. Using high-resolution spectral flow cytometry, we detected robust CHIKV-specific CD4⁺ T cell responses, but not CD8⁺ T cell responses in the periphery. Patients experiencing chronic symptoms displayed a significantly higher abundance of CHIKV-specific memory CD4⁺ T cells, compared to their recovered counterparts. Furthermore, these CD4⁺ T cells displayed a significantly lower Th1 phenotype but were enriched in the Th17 phenotype, with the predominant production of TNFɑ. Overall, our work demonstrates that CD4⁺ T cells play a pivotal role in the pathogenesis of CHIKV and provides insight into possible therapeutic options.