TCR activation mimics CD127(low)PD-1(high) phenotype and functional alterations of T lymphocytes from septic shock patients

BACKGROUND: Sepsis is the leading cause of mortality for critically ill patients worldwide. Patients develop T lymphocyte dysfunctions leading to T-cell exhaustion associated with increased risk of death. As interleukin-7 (IL-7) is currently tested in clinical trials to reverse these dysfunctions, it is important to evaluate the expression of its specific CD127 receptor on the T-cell surface of patients with septic shock. Moreover, the CD127(low)PD-1(high) phenotype has been proposed as a T-cell exhaustion marker in chronic viral infections but has never been evaluated in sepsis. The objective of this study was first to evaluate CD127 and CD127(low)PD-1(high) phenotype in septic shock in parallel with functional T-cell alterations. Second, we aimed to reproduce septic shock–induced T-cell alterations in an ex vivo model. METHODS: CD127 expression was followed at the protein and mRNA levels in patients with septic shock and healthy volunteers. CD127(low)PD-1(high) phenotype was also evaluated in parallel with T-cell functional alterations after ex vivo activation. To reproduce T-cell alterations observed in patients, purified T cells from healthy volunteers were activated ex vivo and their phenotype and function were evaluated. RESULTS: In patients, neither CD127 expression nor its corresponding mRNA transcript level was modified compared with normal values. However, the percentage of CD127(low)PD-1(high) T cells was increased while T cells also presented functional alterations. CD127(low)PD-1(high) T cells co-expressed HLA-DR, an activation marker, suggesting a role for T-cell activation in the development of this phenotype. Indeed, T-cell receptor (TCR) activation of normal T lymphocytes ex vivo reproduced the increase of CD127(low)PD-1(high) T cells and functional alterations following a second stimulation, as observed in patients. Finally, in this model, as observed in patients, IL-7 could improve T-cell proliferation. CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of CD127(low)PD-1(high) T cells in patients was increased compared with healthy volunteers, although no global CD127 regulation was observed. Our results suggest that TCR activation participates in the occurrence of this T-cell population and in the development of T-cell alterations in septic shock. Furthermore, we provide an ex vivo model for the investigation of the pathophysiology of sepsis-induced T-cell immunosuppression and the testing of innovative immunostimulant treatments. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s13054-018-2305-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.