Journal Article Epublish
PubMed: 40733683 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines13070706
BCG Vaccination Potentially Modulates the Transcriptome of Infant CD4 T Cells in Addition to Age-Dependent Immune Ontogeny-Associated Changes.
Vaccines (Basel) 13(7)
Authors: Vidya Vijayan Karuvan Kandiyil, Eunchong Kang, Emily Coates, Portia Kamthunzi, Gerald Tegha, Mina Hosseinipour, Di Wu, Fei Zou, Kristina De Paris
Affiliations
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
- Department of Biostatistics, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
- Vaccine Research Center, National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Bethesda, MA 20892, USA.
- UNC Project Malawi, Lilongwe P.O. Box 1056, Malawi.
- Institute for Global Health and Infectious Diseases, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND
The Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine is part of the Extended Programme on Immunization (EPI) and as such is generally administered at birth. The global introduction of BCG not only protected many vaccinated infants against severe complications of tuberculosis but also resulted in markedly reduced overall childhood mortality. Studies in human adults determined that BCG vaccination induces epigenetic reprogramming of innate immune cells (also known as trained immunity) and can also enhance T cell responses to both mycobacterial and non-mycobacterial antigens.
GOAL AND METHODS
The current study tested the hypothesis that BCG immunization similarly impacts the functionally distinct infant immune system. Towards this goal, we applied RNA sequencing to assess transcriptome changes in circulating CD4 + T cells of Malawian infants prior to and 2 to 13 weeks after BCG immunization.
RESULTS
In the first three months of life, transcriptome changes of infant CD4 T cells implied a functional shift towards T helper 1 and Th17 immunity. Vaccination with BCG resulted in additional modulation of the CD4 T cell transcriptome and differentially expressed genes could be linked to metabolomic function.
CONCLUSIONS
These findings are consistent with data reported in BCG vaccinated adults and contribute to the understanding of molecular changes in infant CD4 T cells that may explain the improved capacity of the infant immune system to respond to pathogens after BCG vaccination.
MeSH
Cells, Immunization, Vaccines, Transcriptome, Vaccination, Immune System, Immunity, Infant