Central and Effector Memory Human CD4⁺ and CD8⁺ T Cells during Cutaneous Leishmaniasis and after In Vitro Stimulation with <i>Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis</i> Epitopes

Cutaneous Leishmaniasis (CL) is a Neglected Tropical Disease characterized by skin ulcers caused by <i>Leishmania</i> spp. protozoans and there is no safe and effective vaccine to reduce its negative consequences. In a previous work by our group, we identified T cell epitopes of <i>Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis</i> which stimulated patients’ T cells in vitro. In the present work, the peptides were tested as two pools for their ability to rescue memory T cells during natural infection by Leishmania. We analyzed the frequency of central memory (TCM, CD45RA-CD62L+) and effector memory (TEM, CD45RA + CD62L-) cells during active CL and post-treatment. In parallel, we investigated cell proliferation levels and the cytokines produced after stimulation. Interestingly, we observed higher frequencies (%) in CD4+ TEM during CL, and CD8+ TEM and CD8+ TCM during CL and post-treatment. Cell proliferation was increased, and a significant difference in expression was observed on T-bet and RORγT. Besides that, IFN-γ, IL-2, and IL-10 were detected in patient samples. Collectively, this dataset suggests that during CL there is an increase in the frequency of TCM and TEM, especially in the CD8 compartment. These results indicate a potentially immunogenic profile of the peptide pools, which can support the development of anti-Leishmania formulations.