Harnessing the IL-7/IL-7Rα axis to improve tumor immunotherapy

IL-7 and IL-15 are critical for supporting T cells transferred into a lymphopenic environment. As activated CD8+ T cells downregulate IL-7Rα, it is thought IL-15 is more important. However, we find that CD8+ T cells activated with IL-12 have elevated IL-7Rα and rely on IL-7 for persistence and antitumor immunity