Recent studies have demonstrated that a subpopulation of neutrophils express the TCRαβ combinatorial immunoreceptor in humans and mice. Here, we report that a Plasmodium berghei ANKA murine malaria infection induces expansion of TCRβ expressing CD11b+ Ly6G+ neutrophils in the spleen during the early phase of infection. Measurement of TCRβ transcript and protein levels of neutrophils in wild-type versus nude and Rag1 knockout mice establishes that the observed expression is not a consequence of nonspecific antibody staining or passive receptor expression due to phagocytosis or trogocytosis of peripheral T cells. Remarkably, on day 3 postinfection, we observed a highly significant correlation between the proportion of neutrophils that express TCRβ and peripheral blood parasite burden. In addition, TCRβ+ neutrophils phagocytose parasitized erythrocytes with 4-fold greater efficiency than TCRβ- neutrophils. Together these results signify that TCR expression by the neutrophil plays an important role in the regulation of parasite burden by enhancing the phagocytic capacity of the neutrophil.
Keywords: Plasmodium berghei ANKA; TCRβ; neutrophil.
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