Adipose Single-Cell Analysis Reveals Clonal Expansion of Potentially Antiviral CX 3CR1 + CD4 + T Cells with T 1 Transcriptome in Diabetic Persons with HIV

Persons with HIV (PWH) are at high risk for diabetes mellitus. Adipose tissue T cells are a central regulator of inflammation and adipocyte function, and the known establishment of a HIV reservoir in adipose could contribute to metabolic dysregulation. Here, we show that CD4+ T cell subsets increased in the adipose of diabetic PWH, specifically CD69+ and CD69lo CD57+ GPR56+ CX3CR1+, are clonally expanded with shared T cell receptors, suggesting a common lineage. We observed that both CD69+ and CX3CR1+ CD4+ T cells have transcriptomes consistent with a TH1 profile in diabetics versus TH2 in non-diabetics. CX3CR1+ CD4+ T cells from diabetic PWH also have increased expression of genes in innate immune pathways, not present in CD69+ cells, suggesting functional differences. This study sets the stage for future investigations to determine whether viral antigens in adipose tissue may promote clonal expansion of pro-inflammatory CX3CR1+ and CD69+ CD4+ T cells.