SATB1 is a key regulator of quiescence in stem-like CD8+ T cells

Abstract

Stem-like progenitor CD8⁺ T (T_PRO) cells sustain cytotoxic immunity during chronic infection and cancer through quiescence, multipotency and self-renewal, hallmarks shared with memory T cells. However, how these properties are maintained under persistent antigen stimulation remains unclear. Here we identify the genomic organizer SATB1 as selectively enriched in both T_PRO and memory CD8⁺ T cells. Given its role in promoting quiescence in hematopoietic stem cells, we hypothesized that SATB1 supports CD8⁺ T cell stemness. Using CD8⁺ T cell-specific CRISPR deletion of the Satb1 gene, we show that SATB1 is essential for maintaining T_PRO cells during chronic lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus infection and for memory CD8⁺ T cell formation during acute infection. Multi-omic profiling revealed that SATB1 regulates the chromatin accessibility, transcriptional activity and genome architecture of stemness-associated genes including Tcf7, Bach2 and Myb. These findings reveal a critical role for SATB1 in preserving the transcriptional and epigenetic programs that sustain the stem-like state of antigen-specific CD8⁺ T cells.