Functional and transcriptional differences between degranulating cells in LN and blood.

(A) Flow cytometry plots (HIV-uninfected subject) of matched LN and PB CD107a+ SEB stimulated CD4+ T cell responses. Graphs are showing the frequencies of LN (top) and PB (bottom) CD107a+ SEB stimulated CD4+ T cell responses for CXCR5-, CXCR5+ and CXCR5^hi cells. (B) Flow plots (HIV-infected CP) illustrating the expression of CD107a+ (red) Gag-specific CD4+ T cells in relation to CXCR5 between LN (top) and PB (bottom). (C) Corresponding plots from the same subject showing the expression of CD107a+ (red) Gag-specific CD4+ T cells in relation to CXCR5 and perforin for LN (top) and PB (bottom). Graphs represent the frequency of CD107a+ cells within the CXCR5+, CXCR5^hi and perforin+ compartment for LN (top) and PB (bottom) Gag-specific CD4+ T cells. (D) Biomark analysis illustrating the tSNE distribution of single SEB stimulated CD107+ CD4+ T cells from LN (black) and PB (gray). Individual graphs represent the relative Log2 expression of different markers being significantly different (P<0.05) between blood and LN CD107+ cells. Non-parametric Kruskal Wallis test with Dunn’s multiple comparison test was performed to determine significant differences between groups; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01 and ***P < 0.001. All data-points are derived from the North-American and Mexico cohort.