Theory 20/Hysteresis & Memory/Immunology
Exhaustion Outlasts the Signal
The claim
T cell exhaustion persists after antigen clearance, so the response to a later challenge is set by the history of chronic stimulation rather than by current antigen.
01Mechanism
Chronic stimulation fixes epigenetic states that suppress effector programmes; the marks remain after the stimulus is removed.
02Prediction
Responses should be blunted after prior chronic exposure.
03Refutation
Responses recovering fully with antigen clearance would remove the memory.