CD8+ T cells expand stem and progenitor cells in favorable but not adverse risk acute myeloid leukemia

We performed a comprehensive transcriptomic profiling of BM derived leukemia stem cells (LSCs) and leukemia progenitor cells (LPCs) together with paired CD8+ T cells of AML patients from different molecular risk groups, as well as hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) and progenitor cells (HPCs) with paired CD8+ T cells of controls. This analysis revealed that epigenetic alterations mainly via histone deacetylation reduced the expression of immune-related genes in bone marrow (BM)-infiltrating CD8+ in AML when compared to CD8+ T cells in normal BM and that silenced gene expression pattern correlated with an improved prognosis. Correlation network modeling indicated that CD8+ T cells regulate leukemia stem/progenitor cells (LSPCs) in favorable risk but not in adverse risk AML. We characterized the molecular signature of well-defined leukemia stem/progenitor cells and paired CD8+ T cells in patients with acute myeloid leukemia (AML) compared to control subjects.