NK Cell Proportion and Number Are Influenced by Genetic Loci on Chromosomes 8, 9, and 17

NK cells play a crucial role in innate immunity due to their direct cytotoxicity toward tumors, virally infected cells, and stressed cells, and they also contribute to the orchestration of the adaptive response by their ability to produce immunoregulatory cytokines. In secondary lymphoid organs, NK cells compose the third most abundant lymphocyte subset after T cells and B cells. In this study, we perform an unbiased linkage analysis to determine the genetic loci that may limit the size of the NK cell compartment. Specifically, we exploit differences in NK cell proportion and absolute number between the C57BL/6 and the NOD mice. In addition to the previously identified linkage to chromosome 8, we find that a locus on chromosome 17, which encompasses the MHC locus, impacts NK cell number. Moreover, we identify a locus on mouse chromosome 9 that is strongly linked to the proportion and absolute number of NK cells. Using NOD congenic mice, we validate that both the MHC and the chromosome 9 loci influence the proportion and absolute number of NK cells. We have thus identified additional loci specifically linked to the proportion of NK cells and present some of the potential candidate genes comprised within these loci.