Asymmetric cell division is predictive of human T cell vaccine responses.

Enhanced asymmetric cell division in mitotic human CD8+ T cells—especially increased LC3B asymmetry—predicts better influenza vaccine responses by linking early autophagy segregation to long-term immune fitness.

• Why it matters: The study addresses a gap in direct human evidence for how asymmetric cell division and autophagy work together to shape vaccine-induced stem-like memory T cell outcomes.
• What they did: The authors show that mitotic human CD8+ T cells asymmetrically segregate autophagy-related organelles and that ACD drives divergent transcriptional and functional fates in daughter cells; in an influenza vaccine trial, autophagic flux tracks clonal expansion and contraction.
• The result: Individuals with enhanced ACD capacity, particularly increased LC3B asymmetry, show better vaccine responses, and transient rapamycin treatment improves memory survival alongside improved ACD measured by asymmetric inheritance of CD8 and LC3B.

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