Tissue Resident CD8+T cells as mediators of protective immunity in breastmilk transmission of HCMV

Breast milk T cells are an understudied cell population. We used single cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to analyze these cells in breast milk of HCMV seropositive women who did or did not transmit HCMV to their babies via breast feeding. Breast milk was collected, and mononuclear cells were isolated by centrifugation. Isolation of leukocytes followed using a CD45 positive selection kit per manufacturer’s instructions (EasySep HumanCD45 Positive Selection Kit, STEMCELL Technologies, Cambridge, MA). Cells where analyzed using scRNAseq