Oliver's mTOR Atlas Evidence Platform
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mTOR regulates memory CD8 T-cell differentiation

Araki K, Turner AP, Shaffer VO, Gangappa S, Keller SA, Bachmann MF, Larsen CP, Ahmed R · 2009 · Nature · Atlas ID ARA2009

What this study shows

mTOR is a key regulator of memory CD8 T-cell differentiation; rapamycin enhances memory responses.

Abstract

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Memory CD8 T cells are a critical component of protective immunity, and inducing effective memory T-cell responses is a major goal of vaccines against chronic infections and tumours. Considerable effort has gone into designing vaccine regimens that will increase the magnitude of the memory response, but there has been minimal emphasis on developing strategies to improve the functional qualities of memory T cells.

Read the full abstract on PubMed →

At a glance

Evidence type A Animal model Marked A because it is an animal intervention or observation study measuring an organismal outcome (model: Mouse); the code names the system studied -- animal work can be rigorous and still not be human data.
Study type4 - Animal Study
Model systemMouse
JournalNature
Year2009
Peer reviewedYes
Record last updated2026-10-01
SourceDOI 10.1038/nature08155 · PMID 19543266 · Free full text (PMC2710807)

Extracted findings

These fields were extracted from the paper with AI assistance and have not been checked against the source. Read them as a pointer into the paper, not as curated claims; where they disagree with the curated summary above, the curated summary stands.

InterventionRapamycin (mTOR modulation)
TargetmTOR
ModelMouse
EffectmTOR regulates memory CD8 T-cell differentiation; rapamycin enhances memory T-cell quantity and quality
DoseRapamycin administered continuously (day -1~35), during expansion (days -1~8), or contraction (days 8~35) post-infection; specific quantitative dose not stated.
Sample sizenot stated
Effect sizeRapamycin enhanced LCMV-specific CD8 T cell responses, decreased T cell contraction, and improved functional qualities of memory CD8 T cells. Memory T cell numbers remained 10-fold higher even 165 days after stopping drug treatment, and rapamycin treatment during contraction resulted in significantly higher numbers of functional memory cells (p <0.0001~0.0022).
LimitationsmTOR knockdown does not completely mimic rapamycin treatment.

In the Atlas

Related topics

mTOR

Open questions that cite this study

Cite this paper

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Araki, K., Turner, A. P., Shaffer, V. O., Gangappa, S., Keller, S. A., Bachmann, M. F., Larsen, C. P., & Ahmed, R. (2009). mTOR regulates memory CD8 T-cell differentiation. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08155

@article{ARA2009,
  author       = {Araki, K. and Turner, A. P. and Shaffer, V. O. and Gangappa, S. and Keller, S. A. and Bachmann, M. F. and Larsen, C. P. and Ahmed, R.},
  title        = {{mTOR regulates memory CD8 T-cell differentiation}},
  journal      = {Nature},
  year         = {2009},
  doi          = {10.1038/nature08155},
  note         = {PMID: 19543266},
}

Cite this Atlas record

The record is the Atlas's own work — the evidence label, the extracted findings and the links. It is cited as part of the dataset, not as the paper. 

Barton, O. (2026). Oliver's mTOR Atlas (record ARA2009) [Data set]. https://mtor-atlas.org/study/ARA2009/ · Dataset DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22059963

@misc{atlas_ARA2009,
  author       = {Barton, Oliver},
  title        = {{Oliver's mTOR Atlas}, record ARA2009},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://mtor-atlas.org/study/ARA2009/},
  doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22059963}
}
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