The present invention relates to a method, in particular an in vitro method, for identifying specific immune cells, in particular naive CD8 + T cells, comprising analyzing the methylation status of at least one CpG position in the mammalian gene region for endosialin (CD248) Demethylation or lack of methylation of this gene region is indicative of a naive CD8 + T cell when compared to a non-naive CD8 + T cell or other (blood) cell type. Analyzes according to the invention can identify naive CD8 + T cells at the epigenetic level and differentiate them from all other cells in complex samples, such as other blood or immune cells. In addition, the present invention provides an improved method for quantifying naive CD8 + T cells, especially in complex samples. The method may be performed without a step of purifying and / or enriching the cells, preferably by using whole blood and / or non-trypsinized tissue.
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