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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2020 May 18.
Published in final edited form as: Immunol Lett. 2019 Feb 13;215:19–23. doi: 10.1016/j.imlet.2019.01.013

Fig. 1. Role of type I IFNs in antiviral CD4+ T cell expansion.

Fig. 1

Left panel. Type I IFNs released upon acute infections act on different cell types to support antigen-specific CD4+ T cell activation. Type I IFNs sensed by DCs increase their maturation, thus providing a more efficient antigen presentation and co-stimulation to T cells. Type I IFNs act on T regulatory cells by dampening their suppressive capabilities and allowing heightened CD4+ T activation. Type I IFNs enhance NK cell activation and effector functions. Finally, type I IFNs sensed by CD4+ T cells protect them from NK cell-mediated killing.

Right panel. Type I IFNs released upon chronic infections create an immunosuppressive environment by increasing PD-L1 and IL-10 expression by DCs. These immunoregulatory DCs induce CD4+ T exhaustion.