Generation of long-term antibody-mediated immunity depends on the germinal centre (GC) reaction, which requires cooperation between antigen-specific T and B lymphocytes. In the human X-linked lymphoproliferative disease and its gene-targeted mouse model, loss-of-function mutations in signalling lymphocyte activation molecule-associated protein (SAP, encoded by SH2D1a) cause a profound defect in GC formation by an as yet unknown mechanism. Using two-photon intravital imaging, here we show that SAP deficiency selectively impairs the ability of CD4+ T cells to stably interact with cognate B cells but not antigen-presenting dendritic cells. This selective defect results in a failure of antigen-specific B cells to receive adequate levels of contact-dependent T cell help to expand normally, despite sap−/− T cells exhibiting the known characteristics of otherwise competent helper T cells. Furthermore, lack of stable interactions with B cells renders sap−/− T cells unable to be efficiently recruited to and retained in a nascent GC to sustain the GC reaction. These results offer a compelling explanation for the GC defect due to SAP deficiency and provide novel insights into the bi-directional communication between cognate T and B cells in vivo.

During chronic viral infection, virus-specific CD8(+) T cells become exhausted, exhibit poor effector function and lose memory potential. However, exhausted CD8(+) T cells can still contain viral replication in chronic infections, although the mechanism of this containment is largely unknown. Here we show that a subset of exhausted CD8(+) T cells expressing the chemokine receptor CXCR5 has a critical role in the control of viral replication in mice that were chronically infected with lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus (LCMV). These CXCR5(+) CD8(+) T cells were able to migrate into B-cell follicles, expressed lower levels of inhibitory receptors and exhibited more potent cytotoxicity than the CXCR5(-) [corrected] subset. Furthermore, we identified the Id2-E2A signalling axis as an important regulator of the generation of this subset. In patients with HIV, we also identified a virus-specific CXCR5(+) CD8(+) T-cell subset, and its number was inversely correlated with viral load. The CXCR5(+) subset showed greater therapeutic potential than the CXCR5(-) [corrected] subset when adoptively transferred to chronically infected mice, and exhibited synergistic reduction of viral load when combined with anti-PD-L1 treatment. This study defines a unique subset of exhausted CD8(+) T cells that has a pivotal role in the control of viral replication during chronic viral infection.

CD4+ T cells deficient in signaling lymphocyte activation molecule (SLAM)-associated protein (SAP) exhibit a selective impairment in adhesion to antigen presenting B cells but not dendritic cells (DC), resulting in defective germinal center formation. However, the nature of this selective adhesion defect remained unclear. We found that whereas T:DC interactions were primarily integrin-dependent, T:B cell interactions had both an early integrin-dependent phase and a sustained phase that also required SAP. We further found that the SLAM family member, CD84, was required for prolonged T:B cell contact, optimal T follicular helper function, and germinal center formation in vivo. Moreover, both CD84 and another SLAM member, Ly108, mediated T cell adhesion and participated in stable T:B cell interactions in vitro. Our results reveal insight into the dynamic regulation of T:B cell interactions and identify SLAM family members as critical components of sustained T:B cell adhesion required for productive humoral immunity.