Long noncoding RNA Malat1 is not essential for T cell development and response to LCMV infection

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 T-FH 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.