Abstract
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are emerging as critical mediators of various biological processes in the immune system. The current data showed that the lncRNA Malat1 is highly expressed in T cell subsets, but the function of Malat1 in T cell remains unclear. In this study, we detected the T cell development and both CD8+ and CD4+ T cell response to LCMV infection using Malat1-/- mice model. To our surprise, there were no significant defects in thymocytes at different developmental stages and the peripheral T cell pool with ablation of Malat1. During LCMV infection, Malat1-/- mice exhibited normal effector and memory CD8+ T cells as well as TFH cells differentiation. Our results indicated that Malat1 is not essential for T cell development and T cell-mediated antiviral response though it expresses at very high level in different T cell populations.