Fig.1.

Representative gating strategy for different NK and CD8⁺ T cell subsets. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were first gated for lymphocytes (SSC-A vs. FSC-A). Gated cells were displayed on a plot of CD3 vs. CD8 expression. CD8⁺ cells consisted of two subpopulations, including CD8^low and CD8^high cells were considered as NK cells and various subsets were determined via CD56 and CD57. Since all CD8^high expressed CD3, they proposed as CD8⁺ T cells. Afterward, different CD8⁺ subpopulations were identified using CD27, CD28, CD45, and CD57 markers. NK; Natural killer cell, SSC-A; Side scatter area, and FSC-A; Forward scatter area.