No abstract

Single-cell antigen-receptor gene amplification and sequencing platforms have been used to characterize T cell receptor (TCR) repertoires but typically fail to generate paired fulllength gene products for direct expression cloning and do not enable linking this data to cell phenotype information. To overcome these limitations, we established a highthroughput platform for the quantitative and qualitative analysis of human TCR repertoires that provides insights into the clonal and functional composition of human CD4 + and CD8 + αβ T cells at the molecular and cellular level. The strategy is a powerful tool to qualitatively assess differences between antigen receptors of phenotypically defined αβ T cell subsets, e.g. in immune responses to cancer, vaccination, or infection, and in autoimmune diseases.

The induction of protective humoral immune responses against sporozoite surface proteins of the human parasite Plasmodium falciparum (Pf) is a prime goal in the development of a preerythrocytic malaria vaccine. The most promising antibody target is circumsporozoite protein (CSP). Although PfCSP induces strong humoral immune responses upon vaccination, vaccine efficacy is overall limited and not durable. Here, we review recent efforts to gain a better molecular and cellular understanding of anti-PfCSP B cell responses in humans and discuss ways to overcome limitations in the induction of stable titers of high-affinity antibodies that might help to increase vaccine efficacy and promote long-lived protection.