Biology subjects

Mallevaey, T.

Publications and source records attributed to Mallevaey, T..

6 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

MAIT cells protect in severe pneumococcal pneumonia by regulating neutrophil/macrophage antimicrobial activities

Mucosal-Associated Invariant T (MAIT) cells populate the lung tissue where they contribute to defense against respiratory infections. While MAIT cells have been implicated in host resistance to infections caused by Gram-negative bacteria, their contribution in immunity against Gram-positive bacteria-driven pneumonia is still enigmatic. Here, we demonstrate that both mouse and human MAIT cells are activated during severe infection caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, the major cause of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia. Upon infection, lung MAIT cells undergo a transcriptional reprogramming associated with acquisition of potent antimicrobial properties. MAIT cell-deficient mice are more susceptible to pneumococcal pneumonia, including higher mortality, uncontrolled bacterial growth and dissemination, and impaired neutrophil and interstitial macrophage activity. Moreover, prophylactic stimulation of MAIT cells using cognate antigen protects from pneumococcus-induced lethal pneumonia. These findings demonstrate that MAIT cells are key cellular actors during Gram-positive bacterial infections.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2024

A Unified Atlas of T cell Glycophysiology

Glycans are emerging as important regulators of T cell function but remain poorly characterized across the functionally distinct populations that exist in vivo. Here, we couple single-cell analysis technologies with soluble lectins and chemical probes to interrogate glycosylation patterns on major T cell populations across multiple mouse and human tissues. Our analysis focused on terminal glycan epitopes with immunomodulatory functions, including sialoglycan ligands for Siglecs. We demonstrate that glycosylation patterns are diverse across the resting murine T cell repertoire and dynamically remodelled in response to antigen-specific stimulation. Surprisingly, we find that human T cell populations do not share the same glycoprofiles or glycan remodelling dynamics as their murine counterparts. We show that these differences can be explained by divergent regulation of glycan biosynthesis pathways between the species. These results highlight fundamental glycophysiological differences between mouse and human T cells and reveal features that are critical to consider for glycan-targeted therapies.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2024

Bona fide cytotoxic iNKT cells with superior antitumour responses identified in mice and humans

Adoptive cell therapies (ACT) using unmodified or engineered invariant Natural Killer T (iNKT) cells are in clinical trials for cancer treatment. While promising, outcomes are still suboptimal, possibly due to iNKT cell heterogeneity. This study identified unique iNKT cell populations with strong cytotoxic activity in mice and humans. In mice, iNKT1c cells showed potent CD1d-dependent and -independent antitumor functions, with responses influenced by NK receptors. IL-15 enhances their cytolytic activity, while retinoic acid is essential for their generation. In humans, terminally differentiated CD57+ iNKT cells showed marked NK-receptor expression and most effectively killed C1R tumor cells in vitro. These cells appeared activated/exhausted within tumors of non-small cell lung cancer patients. Additionally, a central memory-like CD62L+ CD4- iNKT subset efficiently expanded and generated cytotoxic CD57+ iNKT cells in vitro, making them an appealing candidate for ACT. This study paves the way for the design of more effective iNKT cell-based immunotherapies.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2023

IFN-γ primes bone marrow neutrophils to acquire regulatory functions in severe viral respiratory infections

Neutrophil subsets endowed with regulatory/suppressive properties are widely regarded as deleterious immune cells that can jeopardize antitumoral response and/or antimicrobial resistance. Here, we describe a sizeable fraction of neutrophils characterized by the expression of Programmed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) in biological fluids of humans and mice with severe viral respiratory infections (VRI). Biological and transcriptomic approaches indicated that VRI-driven PD-L1+ neutrophils are endowed with potent regulatory functions and reduced classical antimicrobial properties, as compared to their PD-L1- counterpart. VRI-induced regulatory PD-L1+ neutrophils were generated in the bone marrow in an IFN-{gamma}-dependent manner and were quickly mobilized into the inflamed lungs where they fulfilled their maturation. Neutrophil depletion and PD-L1 blockade during experimental VRI resulted in higher mortality, increased local inflammation and reduced expression of resolving factors. These findings suggest that PD-L1+ neutrophils are important players in disease tolerance by mitigating local inflammation during severe VRI and that they may constitute relevant targets for future immune interventions.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2022

Microbial Energy Metabolism Fuels a CSF2-dependent Intestinal Macrophage Niche within Tertiary Lymphoid Organs

Maintaining intestinal macrophage (MP) heterogeneity is critical to ensure tissue homeostasis and host defense. The gut microbiota and host factors are thought to synergistically shape colonic MP development, although there remains a fundamental gap in our understanding of the details of such collaboration. Here, we report tertiary lymphoid organs (TLOs), enriched in group 3 innate lymphoid cells (ILC3s), as a microbiota-operated intestinal niche for the development of monocyte-derived MPs. ILC3-derived colony stimulating factor 2 (CSF2) serves as a developmental and functional determinant for MPs and required microbe-derived extracellular adenosine 5-triphosphate (ATP) as a trigger. Microbial communities rich in extracellular ATP promoted MP turnover via ILC3 activity in an NLRP3-dependent fashion. Single cell RNA-sequencing of MPs revealed unique TLO-associated, CSF2-dependent MP populations critical for anti-microbial defense against enteric infection. Collectively, these findings describe a fundamental framework that constitutes an intestinal MP niche fueled by microbial energy metabolism.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2020

High dimensional single-cell analysis reveals iNKT cell developmental trajectories and effector fate decision

CD1d-restricted invariant Natural Killer T (iNKT) cells represent a unique class of T lymphocytes endowed with potent regulatory and effector immune functions. Although these functions are acquired during thymic ontogeny, the sequence of events that give rise to discrete effector subsets remains unclear. Using an unbiased single-cell transcriptomic analysis combined with functional assays, we revealed an unappreciated diversity among thymic iNKT cells, especially among iNKT1 cells. Mathematical modelling and biological methods unravelled a developmental map whereby iNKT2 cells constitute a transient branching point towards the generation of iNKT1 and iNKT17 cells, which reconciles the two previously proposed models. In addition, we identified the transcription co-factor Four-and-a-half LIM domains protein 2 (FHL2) as a critical cell-intrinsic regulator of iNKT1 specification. Thus, these data illustrate the changing transcriptional network that guides iNKT cell effector fate.

immunology↗