The Effect of Inflammation on CD8 T cell Memory Kinetics and The Role of Fcγ Receptors on T cells

Currently I am involved in two projects. The first involves studying how inflammation affects CD8 T cell memory kinetics. Dr. John Harty's lab has shown that the rate at which CD8 T cells acquire memory characteristics can be manipulated by controlling inflammation. I am currently using mouse genome-wide ChIP-Sequencing along with mouse genome-wide microarray analysis to uncover how inflammation influences the progression by which CD8 T cells attain memory characteristics at the molecular level. For the second project, I am investigating the role of Fcγ receptors on the surface of antigen-experienced T cells. Much speculation surrounds the idea of Fcγ receptors residing on the surface of T cells; however, we have recently observed a dramatic increase of their presence on activated CD8 T cells at the level of transcription and cell surface expression following in vivo immunization. Within the scope of this project, I plan to elucidate the unknown role Fcγ receptors play on the surface of antigen-experienced T cells.

Kim MT, Kurup SP, Starbeck-Miller GR, Harty JT. Manipulating Memory CD8 T Cell Numbers by Timed Enhancement of IL-2 Signals. J Immunol. 2016 Sep 1;197(5):1754-61. doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.1600641. PubMed PMID: 27439516; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4992593.

Khan SH, Martin MD, Starbeck-Miller GR, Xue HH, Harty JT, Badovinac VP. The Timing of Stimulation and IL-2 Signaling Regulate Secondary CD8 T Cell Responses. PLoS Pathog. 2015 Oct 2;11(10):e1005199. doi: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1005199. PubMed PMID: 26431533; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC4592272.

Starbeck-Miller GR, Harty JT. The Role of Il-12 and Type I Interferon in Governing the Magnitude of CD8 T Cell Responses. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2015;850:31-41. doi: 10.1007/978-3-319-15774-0_3. Review. PubMed PMID: 26324344.

Gorman JV, Starbeck-Miller G, Pham NL, Traver GL, Rothman PB, Harty JT, Colgan JD. Tim-3 directly enhances CD8 T cell responses to acute Listeria monocytogenes infection. J Immunol. 2014 Apr 1;192(7):3133-42. doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.1302290.Epub 2014 Feb 24. PubMed PMID: 24567532; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3965639.

Starbeck-Miller GR, Xue HH, Harty JT. IL-12 and type I interferon prolong the division of activated CD8 T cells by maintaining high-affinity IL-2 signaling in vivo. J Exp Med. 2014 Jan 13;211(1):105-20. doi: 10.1084/jem.20130901. Epub 2013 Dec 23. PubMed PMID: 24367005; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3892973.

Starbeck-Miller GR, Badovinac VP, Barber DL, Harty JT. Cutting edge: Expression of FcγRIIB tempers memory CD8 T cell function in vivo. J Immunol. 2014 Jan 1;192(1):35-9. doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.1302232. Epub 2013 Nov 27. PubMed PMID: 24285839; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3874719.

Nolz JC, Starbeck-Miller GR, Harty JT. Naive, effector and memory CD8 T-cell trafficking: parallels and distinctions. Immunotherapy. 2011 Oct;3(10):1223-33. doi: 10.2217/imt.11.100. Review. PubMed PMID: 21995573; PubMed Central PMCID:PMC3214994.

Wirth TC, Martin MD, Starbeck-Miller G, Harty JT, Badovinac VP. Secondary CD8+ T-cell responses are controlled by systemic inflammation. Eur J Immunol. 2011 May;41(5):1321-33. doi: 10.1002/eji.201040730. Epub 2011 Mar 21. PubMed PMID:21425157; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3083480.