Single cell characterization of blood and expanded regulatory T cells in autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome type 1

Abstract

Immune tolerance fails in autoimmune polyendocrine syndrome type 1 (APS-1) because of AIRE mutations. We have used single cell transcriptomics to characterize regulatory Tcells (Tregs) sorted directly from blood and from invitro expanded Tregs in APS-1 patients compared to healthy controls. We revealed only CD52 and LTB (down) and TXNIP (up) as consistently differentially expressed genes in the datasets. There were furthermore no large differences of the TCR-repertoire of expanded Tregs between the cohorts, but unique patients showed a more restricted use of specific clonotypes. We also found that invitro expanded Tregs from APS-1 patients had similar suppressive capacity as controls in co-culture assays, despite expanding faster and having more exhausted cells. Our results suggest that APS-1 patients do not have intrinsic defects in their Treg functionality, and that their Tregs can be expanded exvivo for potential therapeutic applications.