Figure 3. Poor effector CD8⁺KLRG1⁺ T cell functionality is not primarily caused by CD8⁺ T cell–intrinsic deficits.

(A) Equal number of CD8⁺ T cells from CD90.1 young (6–8 weeks old) and CD90.2 aged (14 months old) naive mice were adoptively transferred to young Cd8^–/– mice. 24 hours later, recipients were challenged with E. cuniculi, and CD8⁺ T cell response was assessed after 12 days of infection. (B) Gating strategy. (C and D) Donor CD8⁺KLRG1⁺ T cell frequencies in recipient mice. (E and F) IFN-γ and Gzb production were evaluated in donor CD8⁺KLRG1⁺ and CD8⁺KLRG1^– T cells in these animals. Data represent 2 experiments with 3–4 mice per group. Unless otherwise indicated, “aged” refers to 14- to 15-month-old mice throughout. Numbers in dot plots denote percentages.