Interfacial actin protrusions mechanically potentiate killing by cytotoxic T cells

ABSTRACT Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) kill by forming immunological synapses with target cells and secreting toxic proteases and the pore forming protein perforin into the intercellular space. Immunological synapses are highly dynamic structures that potentiate perforin activity by applying mechanical force against the target cell. Here, we employed high-resolution imaging and microfabrication to investigate how CTLs exert synaptic forces and coordinate their mechanical output with perforin secretion. Using micropatterned stimulatory substrates that enable synapse growth in three dimensions, we found that perforin release occurs at the base of actin-rich protrusions that extend from central and intermediate locations within the synapse. These protrusions, which depended on the cytoskeletal regulator WASP and the Arp2/3 actin nucleation complex, were required for synaptic force exertion and efficient killing. They also mediated physical distortion of the target cell surface during CTL-target cell interactions. Our results reveal the mechanical basis of cellular cytotoxicity and highlight the functional importance of dynamic, three-dimensional architecture in immune cell-cell interfaces. One sentence summary Cytotoxic T lymphocytes use F-actin-rich protrusions at the immunological synapse to potentiate perforin-and granzyme-mediated target cell killing.