The costimulation-regulated duration of PKB activation controls T cell longevity. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • A brief antigenic stimulus can promote T cell proliferation, but the duration and nature of intracellular signals required for survival are unclear. Here we show that in the absence of OX40 costimulation, antigen-activated CD4+ cells are short-lived because the activity of protein kinase B (PKB; also known as Akt) is not maintained over time. Activated T cells that express a dominant-negative variant of PKB also undergo apoptosis, reproducing the OX40-deficient phenotype. In contrast, an active form of PKB prevents downregulation of antiapoptotic proteins in OX40-deficient T cells, rescues antigen-induced cell survival in vivo, and controls inflammation in recall responses. Thus, sustained and periodic PKB signaling has an integral role in regulating T cell longevity.

published proceedings

  • Nat Immunol

altmetric score

  • 9

author list (cited authors)

  • Song, J., Salek-Ardakani, S., Rogers, P. R., Cheng, M., Van Parijs, L., & Croft, M.

citation count

  • 164

complete list of authors

  • Song, Jianxun||Salek-Ardakani, Shahram||Rogers, Paul R||Cheng, Mary||Van Parijs, Luk||Croft, Michael

publication date

  • February 2004