Transcriptome analysis of circulating and skin transplant resident NK cells

NK cells recruitment into the skin in response to an NK cell activating ligand (m157) and absence of MHC class I expression (B2m knockout) alters the transcriptional profile of the cells compared with circulating NK cells. In this experiment, we compared the gene expression profile of conventional NK cells in circulation with those entering the skin post-transplant as well as with tissue-resident NK cells. Analysis of differentially regulated genes in sorted NK cells from blood, spleen, donor skin and recipient normal recipient skin in two different models. In the first model, m157tgB2m-/- skin was transplanted onto the back of C57BL/6 NKp46iCre/iCre.RosamTmG/mTmG and at day 20 post-transplant CD49b+ NKp46-GFP+ cells were sorted by flow cytometry from blood, spleen, and donor skin as well as CD49a+ NKp46-GFP+ cells from donor skin and recipient skin. In the second model, m157tgB2m+/- skin was transplanted onto the F1 C57BL/+ NKp46+/iCre.Rosa+/mTmG and at day 10 post-transplant CD49b+ NKp46-GFP+ cells were sorted by flow cytometry from blood, spleen, and donor skin as well as CD49a+ NKp46-GFP+ cells from donor skin and recipient skin.