Figure 2. IRE1α is required for optimal protective antiviral NK cell responses.

(a, b) IRE1^NK and littermate control mice were infected with a lethal dose of MCMV. (a) Viral titers in the blood at day 4 PI. n = 8 mice/group. (b) Survival curve. n as indicated in the key. (c) Schematic of co-transfer experiments in d-h: Equal numbers of Ly49H⁺ NK cells from WT (CD45.1) and knockout (KO; CD45.2) donors were co-transferred into recipient Ly49H-deficient mice 1 day before infection with MCMV. (d) Quantification of the percentage of transferred WT and IRE1^NK Ly49H⁺ NK cells in peripheral blood at specified time points PI. Lines showed expansion kinetics by connecting mean values of adjacent time points in ggroup. (e) As in d, except showing the relative percentage within the transferred Ly49H⁺ NK cells. (f) Relative percentages of transferred WT and IRE1^NK Ly49H⁺ NK cells in various organs at day 8 (LN) or day 10 (all other tissues) PI. LN, lymph nodes. n = 4 recipient mice/column. (g) As in d, except the KO donors were XBP1^NK. (h) As in e, except the KO donors were XBP1^NK. n = 4 recipient mice (d, e, g. h). Error bars represent mean with minimal to maximal (a) or with s.d.(e, f, h). Data were analyzed by two tailed Mann-Whitney test (a), two-sided Log rank test (b, with p=0.0601), or two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) with the Sidak post-test (d-h). *p<0.05, **p<0.01, ***p<0.001, ****p<0.0001, ns = not significant. Data are representative of 3 (a, f, g, h) or 4 (d, e) independent experiments, or pooled from 3 experiments (b).