Increasing HbA1c is associated with reduced CD8^+ T cell functionality in response to influenza virus in a TCR-dependent manner in individuals with diabetes mellitus

Diabetes mellitus is on the rise globally and is a known susceptibility factor for severe influenza virus infections.

However, the mechanisms by which diabetes increases the severity of an influenza virus infection are yet to be fully defined.

Diabetes mellitus is hallmarked by high glucose concentrations in the blood.

We hypothesized that these high glucose concentrations affect the functionality of CD8^+ T cells, which play a key role eliminating virus-infected cells and have been shown to decrease influenza disease severity.

To study the effect of hyperglycemia on CD8^+ T cell function, we stimulated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from donors with and without diabetes with influenza A virus, anti-CD3/anti-CD28-coated beads, PMA and ionomycin (PMA/I), or an influenza viral peptide pool.

After stimulation, cells were assessed for functionality [as defined by expression of IFN-γ, TNF-α, macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-1β, and lysosomal-associated membrane protein-1 (CD107a)] using flow cytometry.

Our results showed that increasing HbA1c correlated with a reduction in TNF-α production by CD8^+ T cells in response to influenza stimulation in a TCR-specific manner.

This was not associated with any changes to CD8^+ T cell subsets.

We conclude that hyperglycemia impairs CD8^+ T cell function to influenza virus infection, which may be linked with the increased risk of severe influenza in patients with diabetes.