Fig. 2.

Dynamic changes in EZH2 expression and the H3K27me3 modification in virus-specific T_FH cells. a, b Comparison of EZH2 (a) and H3K27me3 (b) levels between SMARTA T_FH cells (CD25^loCXCR5⁺) and SMARTA T_H1 cells (CD25^hiCXCR5⁻) from the spleens of CD45.2⁺ wild-type mice that underwent adoptive transfer of CD45.1⁺ SMARTA cells and analyzed on day 2 after LCMV Armstrong infection and in naïve (CD44^loCD62L^hi) SMARTA cells (N). c, d Flow cytometry analysis of EZH2 (c) and H3K27me3 (d) levels in T_FH cells derived from the mice listed in a on days 2, 5, 8, 15 and 30 after the LCMV Armstrong infection and in naïve SMARTA cells (N). The EZH2 or H3K27me3 mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) ratio at each time point was calculated as the MFI of T_FH cells / MFI of CD4⁺CD44^lo T cells in an identical mouse. e Flow cytometry analysis of the EZH2^hi, EZH2^inter and EZH2^lo subsets of T_FH cells and T_H1 cells from the mice shown in a on day 2 after the LCMV Armstrong infection. The proportions of T_FH cells and T_H1 cells and the MFI of Bcl-6 in each population are summarized in f, g and h, respectively. i The MFI of H3K27me3 in the EZH2^hi, EZH2^inter and EZH2^lo subsets of T_FH cells described in e. The proportions of T_FH cells (j) and T_H1 cells (k) among the H3K27me3^hi, H3K27me3^inter and H3K27me3^lo subsets of SMARTA cells from mice shown in a on day 2 after the LCMV Armstrong infection. *P < 0.05, ***P < 0.001 and ****P < 0.0001 (unpaired two-tailed t-test). The data are representative of two independent experiments with at least four mice per group (a–d and f–k; error bars in a–d and f–k indicate the s.d.)