Cytotoxic T lymphocyte–mediated killing using granzyme B has recently been proposed to be a preferential and selective source of autoantigens in systemic autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), while other reports have indicated that cytolytic activity in SLE patients was decreased. The aim of this study was to examine the phenotypic and functional status of the CD8+ T cells in SLE patients.

Phenotype analysis of CD8+ T cells was carried out using flow cytometry. The cytotoxic potential of CD8+ T cells and its consequences were examined in redirected‐killing experiments. SLE patients with quiescent disease (n = 41) were compared with SLE patients with active disease (n = 20), normal individuals (n = 36), and control patients with vasculitis (n = 14). Cytotoxic CD8+ T cell differentiation was examined by coculture with differentiated dendritic cells (DCs) in the presence of SLE patient sera.

Patients with disease flares were characterized by higher proportions of perforin‐ and/or granzyme B–positive lymphocytes with a differentiated effector phenotype (CCR7− and CD45RA+). The frequency of these cells in peripheral blood correlated with clinical disease activity as assessed by the SLE Disease Activity Index. These cells generated high amounts of soluble nucleosomes as well as granzyme B–dependent unique autoantigen fragments. Finally, the activation of DCs with serum from a patient with active lupus induced granzyme B expression in CD8+ T lymphocytes.

DCs generated in the presence of sera from SLE patients with active disease could promote the differentiation of CD8+ effector T lymphocytes that are fully functional and able to generate SLE autoantigens. Our data disclose a new and pivotal role of activated CD8+ T lymphocytes in SLE pathogenesis.