Rescue of memory CD8+ T cell reactivity in peptide/TLR9 ligand immunization by codelivery of cytokines or CD40 ligation

The capability of cellular immune components to rapidly recall upon challenge in most situations decides the efficacy of a vaccine. Here, we show that immunization of mice with SSIEFARL peptide (immunodominant epitope in glycoprotein B of herpes simplex virus type 1, aa498-505) combined with TLR9 ligand in the absence of helper CD4+ T cell activation generates a functionally impaired CD8+ T cell memory response. Codelivery of IL-12, IL-15, or anti-CD40 together with MHC class-I-restricted peptide combined with TLR9 ligand at inception of immunization resulted in generation of memory CD8+ T cells that were several fold less compromised than immunization with peptide alone. Furthermore, administration of either plasmid DNA encoding IL-15 or anti-CD40 mAb but not rIL-12 during the memory phase restored the reactivity of memory CD8+ T cells. Moreover, the rescued CD8+ T cells preserved their cytotoxic capability and were able to clear a recombinant vaccinia virus encoding glycoprotein B of HSV. Our results indicate that good memory CD8+ T cell response to peptide immunization can be achieved by using costimulatory procedures at the time of priming or recall immunization.