Kruppel-like factor 2+ CD4 T cells avert microbiota induced intestinal inflammation [Fluidgm]

Commensal immune tolerance requires cells that actively sense and suppress inflammation. To understand how commensal tolerance works, mice colonized with recombinant Candida albicans expressing model MHC II peptide 2W1S were used to track CD4 cells with surrogate commensal specificity by tetramer staining and enrichement. Interestingly, half of the commensal CD4 cell lack expression of established T helper lineage defining transcription markers after intranuclear staining and flow cytometry. To more comprehensively investigate commensal cells, FACS sorted commensal CD4 cells with commensal specificity were analysed individually using single cell RNA sequencing. 2W1S-specific CD4 cells from secondary lymphoid organ among mice colonized with recombinant Candida albicans expressing 2W1S model antigen were FACS pruifed, and subjected to single cell RNA sequecing using the Fluidigm platform.