Human liver-derived CXCR6+ NK cells are predominantly educated through NKG2A and show reduced cytokine production.

Human liver-derived CXCR6+ NK cells are predominantly educated through NKG2A and show reduced cytokine production. J Leukoc Biol. 2019 Feb 19;: Authors: Lunemann S, Langeneckert AE, Martrus G, Hess LU, Salzberger W, Ziegler AE, Löbl SM, Poch T, Ravichandran G, Sauter J, Schmidt AH, Schramm C, Oldhafer KJ, Altfeld M, Körner C Abstract NK cells have been implicated to affect the outcome of numerous liver diseases. In particular, members of the killer-cell Ig-like receptor (KIR) family, predominantly expressed by NK cells, have been associated with the outcome of hepatitis C virus infection and clearance of hepatocellular carcinoma. Inhibitory KIRs tune NK cell function through interaction with HLA class I, a process termed education. Nevertheless, the impact of the hepatic environment on NK cell education is incompletely understood. Therefore, we investigated the composition and function of hepatic KIR-expressing NK cells. Matched PBMC and hepatic lymphocytes were isolated from 20 individuals undergoing liver surgery and subsequently phenotypically analyzed for expression of KIRs and markers for tissue residency using flow cytometry. NK cell function was determined by co-culturing NK cells with the target cell line 721.221 and subsequent assessment of CD107a, IFN-γ, and TNF-α expression. Liver-resident CXCR6+ /CD56Bright NK cells lacked KIRs and were predominantly educated through NKG2A, while CXCR6- /CD16+ NK cells expressed KIRs ...
Source: Journal of Leukocyte Biology - Category: Hematology Authors: Tags: J Leukoc Biol Source Type: research