Mycobacterium tuberculosis growth control by lung macrophages and CD8 cells from patient contacts

Rationale: Healthy household contacts (HHCs) of patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis are exposed aerogenically to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), thus permitting the study of protective local immunity. Objectives: To assess alveolar macrophage (AM) and autologous blood CD4 and CD8 T-cell-mediated Mtb growth control in HHCs and healthy, unexposed community control subjects (CCs). Methods: AMs were infected with Mtb strains H₃₇Ra and H ₃₇Rv at multiplicities of infection 0.1 and 1. Mtb colony-forming units were evaluated on Days 1, 4, and 7. Main Results: CD8 T cells from HHCs in 1:1 cocultures with AMs significantly (p <0.05) increased Mtb growth control by AMs. In CCs, no detectable contribution of CD8 T cells to Mtb growth control was observed. CD4 T cells did not increase Mtb growth control in HHCs or in CCs. IFN-γ, nitric oxide, and tumor necrosis factor were determined as potential mediators of Mtb growth control in AMs and AM/CD8 and AM/CD4 cocultures. IFN-γ production in AM/CD4 was twofold higher than that in AM/CD8 cocultures in both HHCs and CCs (p <0.05). Nitric oxide production from AMs of HHCs increased on Days 4 and 7 and was undetectable in AMs from CCs. IFN-γ and nitric acid concentrations and Mtb growth control were not correlated. Tumor necrosis factor levels were significantly increased in AM/CD8 cocultures from HHCs compared with AM/CD8 cocultures from CCs (p <0.05). Conclusion: Aerogenic exposure to Mtb in HHCs leads to expansion of Mtb-specific effector CD8 T cells that limit Mtb growth in autologous AMs.