Shukla Sarkar, Role of JunB in CD8+ T cell Differentiation and Function

Speaker: Shukla Sarkar, Immune Signals (Ishikawa) Unit 

Title: Role of JunB in CD8+ T cell differentiation and function

Abstract: CD8+ T cells are one of the key components of adaptive immune system and are highly essential for protective immunity and immune surveillance like in case of viral infections. Upon stimulation by antigens or inflammation, in a general case, naïve CD8+ T cells undergo a clonal expansion and differentiation, generating the essential effector cells or long-living memory cells, which is accompanied by a series of transcriptional modifications. This differentiation process is a highly regulated by a subset of transcription factors, but how exactly this menagerie of proteins co-ordinate among themselves and how they control the regulatory process are fairly unknow. JunB, an AP-1 transcription factor, is known to regulate different subsets of T cells but its role in CD8+ T cells remains to be examined. Upon investigation, we find that deletion of JunB in the T cells causes loss of antigen specific CD8+ T cells in mice. It also regulates the expression of several key genes such as Ifng, Il-2 and Il7r in these cells. The underlying mechanism with respect to this regulation is under investigation. Understanding the functions of JunB protein in CD8+ T cells will provide key insights into AP-1 dependent control of CD8+ T cell differentiation and function in tissue homeostasis, inflammatory diseases, obesity and ageing.

Please stay for discussion with free pizza and drinks after the seminar!