Figure 3.

Enhanced effector phenotype and loss of memory precursor effector CD8 T cells in the absence of Bcl11b. WT (Bcl11b^flox/flox/dLck-iCre⁻; n = 8) or Bcl11b-conditional knockout (Bcl11b^flox/flox/dLck-iCre⁺; n = 7) mice were infected i.p with VacV-WR (2 × 10⁵ PFU/mouse). Eight (A) and 14 (B) days postinfection, splenocytes and lung cells were harvested and stained for CD8, CD44, IL-7Rα, KLRG1, and B8R_20–27/k^b tetramer. (A,B) CD8 T cell differentiation was assessed with upregulation of KLRG1 and downregulation of IL-7Rα (CD127) on B8R_20–27/k^b tetramer⁺ cells. Quadrant settings were based on controls, after gating on naïve CD44^lo cells in the same host. Percentages that stained positive for each marker are indicated. The results shown are representative of two separate experiments each with three to four mice per group. Asterisks indicate statistical significance. The p-values are <0.05 by two-tailed Student t-test (WT vs. Cko).