The Expansion and Cytotoxicity Detection of Human iNKT Cells

Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cell is a type of innate-like T cell subsets with both T and NK cell phenotype and functions. They recognize lipid antigens presented by CD1d molecules and can be specifically activated by alpha-galactosylceramide (α-GalCer) in vitro. After activation, iNKT cells expand efficiently and exert direct killing effects. Based on it, we mainly introduce the protocols of detection of human iNKT cell functions in vitro, including in vitro expansion and their cytotoxicity to tumor cells.