PHENOTYPING OF ANTIGEN-SPECIFIC CYTOTOXIC T-LYMPHOCYTES BY THE METHOD OF MULTICOLOR FLOW CYTOMETRY

Modern methods of multicolor flow cytometry in combination with MHC multimer technologies allow not only to identify and isolate cytotoxic T-lymphocyte (CTL) populations, but also to conduct phenotypic research on the level of differentiation, functional features of these cells, and even to investigate the distribution of memory T-cell subsets inside populations specific to particular epitopes of tumor antigens. In the present study, we assessed the level of differentiation and the content of memory T-cell subpopulations in cytotoxic T-lymphocyte populations specific for HER2/neu antigen epitopes (HER2) using the MHC-multimers antigen-specific CD8⁺ T-cell staining method and multicolor flow cytometry. The resulting HER2-specific T cells to a large extent (about 40‒50%) have the TSCM phenotype, a population capable of the most pronounced antitumor immune response due to a combination of effector properties with self-sustainability.