Alexandre P Meli, Gabriel A Russell, Sharada Swaminathan, Laura Weichselbaum, Clara A MacMahon, Erwan Pernet, Danielle Karo-Atar, Dakota Rogers, Annie Rochette, Ghislaine Fontes, Judith N Mandl, Maziar Divangahi, Ophir D Klein, Alex Gregorieff, Simona Stäger, Irah L King
Cluster of differentiation (CD4+ ) T cells consist of multiple subtypes, defined by expression of lineage-specific transcription factors, that contribute to the control of infectious diseases by providing help to immune and nonimmune target cells. In the current study, we examined the role of B cell lymphoma (Bcl)-6, a transcriptional repressor and master regulator of T follicular helper cell differentiation, in T cell-mediated host defense against intestinal and systemic parasitic infections. We demonstrate that while Bcl-6 expression by CD4+ T cells is critical for antibody-mediated protective immunity against secondary infection with the nematode Heligmosoides polygyrus bakeri, it paradoxically compromises worm expulsion during primary infection by limiting the generation of interleukin-10 (IL-10)-producing Gata3+ T helper 2 cells...
September 19, 2023: Mucosal Immunology