Antigen-driven T-cell repertoire selection during adaptive immune responses

Protective immunity against a variety of infections depends on the amplification and differentiation of rare naive antigen-specific CD4 and CD8 T cells. Recent evidence indicates that the clonotypic composition of the responding T-cell compartment has a critical role in the immune defense against pathogens. The present review compares and contrasts how naive CD4 and CD8 T cells recognize their cognate antigen, and discusses the factors that regulate the genesis and maintenance of the CD4 and CD8 T-cell receptor repertoire diversity. Immunology and Cell Biology (2011) 89, 54-59; doi:10.1038/icb.2010.117; published online 19 October 2010