Glycogen Dynamics in Proliferating Human Helper T Cells

The immune system protects the body against infections and cancer. A type of lymphocyte called “helper T cell” plays a vital role in coordinating immune responses. Helper T cells are arguably the most important type of immune cell as they are required for almost all adaptive immune functions. T cells play a vital role in the adaptive immune system, however, very little is known about their metabolic pathways. When presented with an antigen, helper T cells proliferate, differentiate and produce cytokines. The activation of helper T cells is metabolically demanding. T cells require large amounts of glucose from their environment as they proliferate. Glycolytic by-products support rapid cell division through the building of biomass. Systematically, excess glucose is stored in the liver in the form of glycogen, but there is growing evidence that glycogen is found in non-hepatic cells as well. With an increase in glucose uptake in helper T cells, surplus must be stored for later use. Currently, there is very little knowledge on the role of glycogen dynamics in helper T cells. I hypothesized that glycogen is important in helper T cell proliferation and cytokine production. I demonstrated that isolated human helper T cells accumulated glycogen upon activation. Activated T cells accumulated a greater amount of glycogen as compared to non-activated cells (p