Secreting cytokines and killing tumor cells can be stressful for a T lymphocyte. In short adverse circumstances, these cells adapt to acute stress. If the situation persists, they activate a chronic stress response mechanism. According to a study by the Institute for Biomedical Research (IRB) in Barcelona, the cytoplasmic polyadenylation element-binding protein 4 (CPEB4) mediated this adaptation process.
Restoring levels of the immune modulator mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (MANF) in the muscles of aged animals improved their regenerative capacity by promoting repair-associated injury responses, researchers from the University of Lisbon have discovered.
Base editing (BE), a technique that modifies a single nucleotide in living cells, has been successfully tested to resolve the CD3δ mutation in severe combined immunodeficiencies (SCIDs) and produce functional T cells. For now, scientists at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), completed the study on patient stem cells and artificial thymic organoids, shortening the way for future clinical trials.
A study from the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) in Germany has identified a type of T cell that triggered glomerulonephritis (GN) and produced loss of kidney function in mice. The scientists described an autoimmune pathway of this disease mediated by the accumulation of T cells producing granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) in the kidneys and found a possible therapeutic target.
T cells do not have the last word in some breast cancers. According to a study from the University of Pittsburgh, the key to estrogen receptor positive (ER+) breast tumors are macrophages, not T cells, and targeting them could prevent immunotherapy failure in this type of cancer.
When undertaking a study on allergen-induced anaphylaxis in mice, researchers have found that not only the immune but also the nervous system may potentially play a part in the anaphylactic response. In their study published March 17, 2023, in Science Immunology, researchers from Duke University Medical Center reported that mice undergoing anaphylaxis displayed an “extended posture behavior” similar to the one that mice exhibit when exposed to high temperatures.
In the March 2023 issue of Science Immunology, researchers working at the City of Hope National Medical Center reported on the discovery the mechanisms by which the spliced X-box–binding protein 1 (XBP1s) served essential functions in the IL-15-dependent survival of natural killer (NK) cells. Since XBP1s is known to play critical roles in MHCII expression, the unfolded protein stress response, and ultimately tumorigenesis, the study provided deep insights into the understanding of NK cell biology with translational potential.