CD8A and septic shock: Another study published by Chen et al., investigating the immune status of CD8+ lymphocytes by examining the expression of granzyme A, granzyme B, and perforin, found that in septic shock non-survivors the activated CD8+ T lymphocytes were consumed, followed by a suppression of their immune function, but in septic shock survivors, there was a compensatory increase [7], suggesting that a rebalancing surge of cytotoxic players occurs during sepsis.