FIG. 3.

Expression of CD62L, CD127, and CD27 on vaccine-elicited p18-specific CD8⁺ T cells. Mice were immunized with rSmeg-gp120 (5 × 10⁷ CFU) or DNA-gp120 (50 μg). Ten weeks postimmunization mice were boosted with the same quantity of the same vector. p18-specific CD8⁺ T cells were detected in the peripheral blood with an H-2D^d/p18 tetramer, and the expression of CD62L, CD127, and CD27 on gated H-2D^d/p18 tetramer-positive CD8⁺ T cells was determined by flow cytometry. Data are presented as the percentages of tetramer-positive CD8⁺ T cells that were CD62L^hi, CD127^hi, or CD27^hi and are the means of results from five mice per group. SE were always less than 10%. (B) Splenocytes were harvested 7 days (rSmeg-gp120) or 14 days (DNA-gp120) after the boost immunization and were cultured for 6 h in the presence of medium alone or p18 peptide (2 μg/ml). Data are presented as the percentages of tetramer-positive CD8⁺ T cells staining positively for CD107a/b and are the means of results from five mice per group ± SE. *, P < 0.01, compared to the CD107a/b expression in DNA-immunized mice.