T-cell Immunity Assays in the Management of Cytomegalovirus (CMV) Infection

Dear Colleagues,

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is one of the most common opportunistic infections following organ or hematopoetic cell transplantation, and in patients with hematologic malignancies, especially those receiving alemtuzumab. CMV can also affect patients on high-dose steroids, the elderly, and other “immunomodulated”, or even, rarely, immunocompetent individuals. Treatment for CMV, although effective, is associated with significant costs and toxicities. CMV-specific T-cell immunity (TCI) has been associated with protection against the virus, and reduced rates of CMV infection. In research studies, assays measuring CMV-specific TCI have been shown to be clinically useful in a variety of clinical scenaria, guiding initiation or discontinuation of anti-CMV prophylaxis or treatment. Nevertheless, there are still many answered questions regarding their potential utility in everyday clinical practice, or clinical–translational studies of CMV prevention (vaccines) or treatment, including adoptive T-cell immunotherapy. In this externally sponsored Special Issue, we are planning to summarize existing evidence regarding the clinical utility of CMV-specific TCI assays, and future directions in corresponding research areas. We welcome submissions on, but not limited to, the following topics:

1. Burden of CMV infection in different patient populations;
2. CMV T-cell immunity assays in solid organ transplant recipients;
3. CMV T-cell immunity assays in hematopoetic cell transplant recipients;
4. Cost-effectiveness of CMV T-cell immunity assays in guiding anti-CMV prophylaxis and treatment;
5. Significance of CMV-specific CD8+ vs. CD4+ T-cells;
6. Adoptive immunotherapy for CMV infection;
7. Future directions in CMV T-cell immunity research: Role of CMV T-cell immunity assays in CMV-vaccine development.

Dr. Dimitrios Farmakiotis
Guest Editor

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