T Cell Responses to Viral Infections

Dear Colleagues,

Host T cell immunity plays a pivotal role in the clearance of viruses and the alleviation of symptoms. However, T cell response is a complexed process, involving the antigen process and presentation, MHC polymorphisms, and the orchestration of multiple cells and molecules. Furthermore, different from antibody recognition, the targets of the T cell, so-called T cell epitopes are distributed among the whole virus proteome and relatively conserved. Thus, the features of T cell responses, such as intensity, durability, cross-reactivity, and individuality, are needed to be investigated parallelly to the antibody responses for an emerging virus. A technique breakthrough is still required for a standardized and user-friendly test of antigen-specific T cell response after infection or vaccination. Recent T-cell-oriented drug and vaccine developments are also based on potential theoretical breakthroughs. Here, we would like to address new concepts, theories, and techniques on T cell responses to viral infections. Research studies can be focused on T cell responses of patients/convalescents/vaccinees, molecular mechanisms in T cell recognition, development of T cell response assays, T-cell-oriented drugs, and peptide vaccines. Studies aiming at multidisciplinary studies involving the antiviral T cell immunity with epidemiology, ecology, evolution, bioinformatics, and crystallography are also within the scope of this Special Issue.

Prof. Dr. William J. Liu
Prof. Dr. Cong Jin
Dr. Ashley L. St. John
Prof. Dr. Xi Wang
Guest Editors

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