Apoptotic-Cell Accumulation and Mertk Expression Are Linked to Diminished Antiviral CD8+ T Cell Immunity in Chronic Infections
Tom Adomati, Thamer A. Hamdan, Hilal Bhat, Murtaza Ali, Namir Shaabani, Lamin B. Cham · 2026
Read Apoptotic-Cell Accumulation and Mertk Expression Are Linked to Diminished Antiviral CD8+ T Cell Immunity in Chronic Infections by Tom Adomati, Thamer A. Hamdan, Hilal Bhat, Murtaza Ali, Namir Shaabani, Lamin B. Cham (2026) in the Tower of Babel, a free online library of public-domain works preserved in clean, searchable text. No sign-up. The full text is served as a plain-text file at a predictable URL, where text is present: https://antarctic-labs.com/tower-of-babel/PMC13333240.txt.
Description
Tom Adomati and co-authors trace an unexpected brake on antiviral immunity in a 2026 mouse study of the lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus. In lasting infection, killer CD8 T cells tire out under inhibitory signals such as PD-1 and IL-10, but what switches those brakes on was unknown.
Early T cell activation, the team found, goes with piles of dead cells. It also goes with fast rises in the calming signals IL-10 and TGF-β from macrophages and dendritic cells, and strong PD-1 display on the T cells. Mice lacking CD8 T cells showed far less of this. The chain runs from T cell killing, which floods tissues with dying cells, to the kinase Mertk on scavenger cells, which drives the calming signals. Mice without Mertk showed weaker brakes, faster antiviral responses, and better virus control. The authors name dead-cell buildup and Mertk as starters of immune suppression in chronic infection.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Tom Adomati, Thamer A. Hamdan, Hilal Bhat, Murtaza Ali, Namir Shaabani, Lamin B. Cham |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 42900 |
| LICENSE | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |