Dengue virus-infected human dendritic cells reveal hierarchies of naturally expressed novel NS3 CD8 T cell epitopes

Detailed knowledge of dengue virus (DENV) cell-mediated immunity is limited. In this study we characterize CD8(+) T lymphocytes recognizing three novel and two known non-structural protein 3 peptide epitopes in DENV-infected dendritic cells. Three epitopes displayed high conservation (75-100%), compared to the others (0-50%). A hierarchy ranking based on magnitude and polyfunctionality of the antigen-specific response showed that dominant epitopes were both highly conserved and cross-reactive against multiple DENV serotypes. These results are relevant to DENV pathogenesis and vaccine design.