Effect of Temperature on CD8+ T cell differentiation: Implications for Immunity and Thermal Adaptation

• Grant number: 25/01416-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2025
• End date: June 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Immunology - Cellular Immunology
• Principal Investigator: João Gustavo Pessini Amarante Mendes
• Grantee: Murilo Henrique Ozório Leite
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The immune system is a complex network of molecules, proteins, cells, tissues, and organs that defend our body. It performs diverse functions, such as recognizing, identifying, and fighting a wide range of potentially harmful substances or pathogens, including bacteria, viruses, fungi, worms, and protozoan, in addition to repair damaged tissues. It is didactically divided into two main components: the innate and the adaptive immune system. The innate immune system is the body's first line of defense against pathogens, while the adaptive immune system takes longer to get activated but is highly specialized and capable of recognizing specific portions of pathogen antigens and keep memory of previous encounters. Among the components of the adaptive immune system, cytotoxic CD8+ T lymphocytes play an important role in eliminating tumor and infected cells. These lymphocytes, also known as cytotoxic T cells (CTL), can differentiate into a variety of effector cells, such as Tc1, Tc2, Tc9, Tc17 and Tc22, each with particular effector properties. Our lab is currently investigating the mechanisms that regulate such differentiation process. The aim of this project is to determine whether temperatures reached during fever and hypothermia could interfere with the activation and differentiation to one or more of the abovementioned subpopulations. (AU)