Lymphocytes articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article |

    C-type lectin receptor DC-SIGN, expressed on dendritic cells, shapes cytokine production in response to pathogens. Here, the authors show how recognition of fucose-expressing pathogens, Schistosoma mansoni and Helicobacter pylori, by this receptor directs T helper cell type-2 responses via activation of the NF-κB family member Bcl3.

    • Sonja I. Gringhuis
    • , Tanja M. Kaptein
    •  & Teunis B. H. Geijtenbeek

  • Article |

    Type I interferons (IFNs) have pleiotropic functions in the immune system. Here, the authors evaluate transcriptional signatures generated by type I IFN under distinct T helper cell differentiation programmes and show that, depending on the cytokine context, IFN-α differentially modulates the global cytokine profile of each T helper subset.

    • Maxime Touzot
    • , Maximilien Grandclaudon
    •  & Vassili Soumelis

  • Article |

    Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are a subset of innate-like T cells, abundant in mucosal tissues, blood and liver. Here, using T-cell cloning and deep sequencing, Lepore et al. analyse the T-cell receptorβ repertoire of MAIT cells and further characterize function and tissue distribution of two semi-invariant subsets of these cells.

    • Marco Lepore
    • , Artem Kalinichenko
    •  & Lucia Mori

  • Article |

    The cytokine interleukin-22 maintains the integrity of the colonic epithelium during inflammation. Here, the authors show that IL-21 regulates the production of IL-22 in T cells and this mechanism plays a protective role in a mouse model of colitis.

    • Ada Yeste
    • , Ivan D. Mascanfroni
    •  & Francisco J Quintana

  • Article |

    Nucleic acids modulate T cell responses; however, the physiological significance of this property remains unclear. Here, the authors show that self-DNA complexes with antimicrobial peptides or histones, which mediates T cell costimulation to induce Th2 cell differentiation.

    • Takayuki Imanishi
    • , Chitose Ishihara
    •  & Takashi Saito

  • Article
    | Open Access

    CD8 expression levels on peripheral CD8+ T cells are regulated during development and effector differentiation. Here, the authors show that methylation patterns at the Cd8a locus, whose product is essential for surface CD8 expression, can change during T-cell development, activation, cytokine polarization and reprogramming.

    • Kim L. Harland
    • , E. Bridie Day
    •  & Anne Kelso

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are important for the maintenance of self-tolerance and this requires their trafficking to the lymph nodes and target tissues. Here, the authors show that the recognition of self-antigens expressed by endothelial cells in target tissue is instrumental for efficient Treg recruitment in vivo.

    • Hongmei Fu
    • , Madhav Kishore
    •  & Federica M. Marelli-Berg

  • Article
    | Open Access

    NK cells are involved in remodelling of the uterine vasculature during pregnancy and the extent of this process is influenced by the combination of maternal NK cell receptors and MHC-I of the fetus. Here, the authors provide further insights into how the presence of MHC-I from each parent differentially affects NK cell function.

    • Jens Kieckbusch
    • , Louise M. Gaynor
    •  & Francesco Colucci

  • Article |

    Th17 cells are involved in the pathogenesis of several inflammatory diseases. Here, the authors show that inhibitors of the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF, used in patients undergoing anti-inflammatory treatment, might mediate the acquisition of anti-inflammatory properties by these typically pathogenic cells.

    • Hayley G. Evans
    • , Urmas Roostalu
    •  & Leonie S. Taams

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Mucosa-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are a recently described subset of unconventional, innate-like T cells and their development is not well understood. Here, the authors analyse MAIT cells in fetal human tissues and show that, unlike in mice, the commensal microflora is not necessary for their maturation in humans.

    • Edwin Leeansyah
    • , Liyen Loh
    •  & Johan K. Sandberg

  • Article |

    Single nucleotide polymorphisms in the gene encoding the protein phosphatase PTPN2 are associated with autoimmunity in humans. Here, Wiede et al. show that PTPN2 suppresses the proliferative capacity of T cells in lymphopenia and prevents the development of autoimmunity resulting from overt homoeostatic proliferation.

    • Florian Wiede
    • , Nicole L. La Gruta
    •  & Tony Tiganis

  • Article |

    Asthma is often characterized by Th2-mediated inflammatory responses, which are initiated by lung dendritic cells. Here, Williams et al.demonstrate that dendritic cell expression of transcription factor IRF4 drives Th2 differentiation through IL-33 and IL-10 activation.

    • Jesse W. Williams
    • , Melissa Y. Tjota
    •  & Anne I. Sperling

  • Article |

    Thymic stromal lymphopoietin is an important initiator of Th2 responses, but, to date, little is known about how it drives the immune cascade in the tissue microenvironment in vivo. Here, the authors show that skin thymic stromal lymphopoietin orchestrate interactions between immune cells, leading to Th2 priming.

    • Juan Manuel Leyva-Castillo
    • , Pierre Hener
    •  & Mei Li

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Induction of protective immunity mediated by CD8+ T cells has been a long sought goal in vaccinology. Here, Ewer et al. report induction of protective efficacy against Plasmodium falciparummalaria in a phase IIa prime-boost vaccine trial where efficacy correlates strongly with induced CD8 T-cell responses.

    • Katie J. Ewer
    • , Geraldine A. O’Hara
    •  & Adrian V. S. Hill

  • Article |

    Polymorphisms in the integrin gene CD11bare associated with susceptibility to systemic lupus erythematosus, but how this relates to the function of this integrin has not been fully investigated. Here, the authors report that CD11b has a role in the intrinsic maintenance of autoreactive B cell tolerance by regulating BCR signalling.

    • Chuanlin Ding
    • , Yunfeng Ma
    •  & Jun Yan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Dynamic changes in T cell repertoire underlie immune responses during infection, allergy, autoimmunity and cancer. Here, Li et al. present a workflow for high throughput sequencing and analysis of T cell receptor sequences, and use it to monitor the T cell response to influenza vaccination in a human patient.

    • Shuo Li
    • , Marie-Paule Lefranc
    •  & Eric J. Gowans

  • Article |

    The differentiation of naive CD4 T cells into T-helper-cell subsets is thought to be influenced by factors in the T-cell environment. Martin et al.reveal that cell intrinsic differences also determine lineage commitment and show that cells with the highest avidity for self are most likely to become induced regulatory T cells.

    • Bruno Martin
    • , Cédric Auffray
    •  & Bruno Lucas

  • Article |

    T-cell receptors expressed on mucosal-associated invariant T cells function in a similar manner to innate immune receptors by recognizing small molecules such as microbial metabolites. Here, the authors report structures of this receptor in complex with vitamin B metabolites presented by the MHC-like protein MR1.

    • Onisha Patel
    • , Lars Kjer-Nielsen
    •  & Jamie Rossjohn

  • Article |

    The end-result of stimulation of T-cell receptors by antigen is in part determined by co-signalling pathways such as the B7/CD28 axis. Zhu et al.identify a novel costimulatory CD28-like receptor and ligand pathway in human T cells.

    • Yuwen Zhu
    • , Sheng Yao
    •  & Lieping Chen

  • Article |

    Although structural insights into antigen recognition by T cell receptors are increasingly available, the thermodynamic underpinnings are less well understood. Here the authors deconstruct the energetics of a representative interface and discover that peptide specificity, cross-reactivity and MHC restriction can be inextricably linked.

    • Kurt H. Piepenbrink
    • , Sydney J. Blevins
    •  & Brian M. Baker

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Intestinal plasma cells contribute to the delicate balance between immunity against pathogens and tolerance of intestinal microflora. Kunisawa et al. identify a subpopulation of plasma cells whose proliferation depends on stimulation by microbes and IL-10, and which mediate early-phase responses to oral antigens.

    • Jun Kunisawa
    • , Masashi Gohda
    •  & Hiroshi Kiyono

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Both dendritic cells and basophils have been shown to influence T helper 2 cell induction, however the relative importance of their roles remains unclear. Otsuka et al. find that basophils present hapten and peptide antigens to T cells, but are unable to present protein antigens in the absence of dendritic cells.

    • Atsushi Otsuka
    • , Saeko Nakajima
    •  & Kenji Kabashima

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Activation of cAMP signalling by prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) has long been thought to suppress Tcell receptor activation and Th1 cell differentiation. Yao et al. reveal that dual stimulation of both cAMP and PI 3-kinase pathways by PGE2 synergistically promotes Th1 differentiation by amplifying IL-12 and IFN-γsignalling.

    • Chengcan Yao
    • , Takako Hirata
    •  & Shuh Narumiya

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The transcriptional repressor NKAP is required at an early stage of T cell development for the differentiation of αβ T cells. Thapa et al.now show that at a later stage, NKAP has a specific role in positive selection of double positive thymocytes into the iNKT cell lineage.

    • Puspa Thapa
    • , Joy Das
    •  & Virginia Smith Shapiro

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1 regulates many physiological functions including growth and metabolism. Ni et al.show that human natural killer cells secrete IGF-1 and that IGF-1 enhances the development and cytotoxicity of these cells.

    • Fang Ni
    • , Rui Sun
    •  & Haiming Wei

  • Article |

    The human germinal centre-associated lymphoma gene is expressed in germinal centre B-lymphocytes; however, its function is unknown. Here the authors show that human germinal centre-associated lymphoma activates Syk kinase, leading to lymphoid hyperplasia and systemic reactive amyloid A amyloidosis in transgenic mice.

    • Isabel Romero-Camarero
    • , Xiaoyu Jiang
    •  & Izidore S Lossos

  • Article
    | Open Access

    T-bet and GATA3 regulate differentiation of T cells into Th1 or Th2 cell fates, but little is known about their functional interaction outside of the IFNγ and Il4 /Il5/Il13 loci. Kanhere et al. map these factors across the genome in human T cells, revealing unappreciated breadth of function and interplay between them.

    • Aditi Kanhere
    • , Arnulf Hertweck
    •  & Richard G. Jenner

  • Article |

    The division of the immune system into innate and adaptive arms has become blurred in recent years. Kuka et al.identify a novel population of αβ-T-cell receptor-expressing cells in mice and humans that both presents and responds to antigen and produces interleukin-12, thus exhibiting core properties of both dendritic cells and T cells.

    • Mirela Kuka
    • , Ivana Munitic
    •  & Jonathan D. Ashwell

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The role of CD4+ T cells in the generation of memory CD8+ T cells is not fully understood. In this study, the exposure of CD8 memory precursors to interleukin-2 during early antigen priming is shown to be controlled by FoxP3+ regulatory CD4+T cells, resulting in the production of functional memory cells.

    • M.G. de Goër de Herve
    • , S. Jaafoura
    •  & Y. Taoufik

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Epitopes presented by MHC-II molecules bind to T-cell receptors to activate CD4+ T cells. In this study, changes in the carboxy-terminal region of the influenza hemagglutinin epitope HA305-320alters the strength of binding to the T-cell receptor, thus modulating T-cell receptor usage and activation.

    • David K. Cole
    • , Kathleen Gallagher
    •  & Andrew Godkin

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The molecular mechanisms that regulate TH17 cell diversity are poorly understood. Ouyang et al. show that the transcription factor interferon regulatory factor-8 is required for TH17-cell differentiation and that its absence increases the severity of an experimental model of colitis.

    • Xinshou Ouyang
    • , Ruihua Zhang
    •  & Huabao Xiong

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Regulatory T cells are characterized by the expression of Foxp3, however, how the expression of this protein is controlled is unclear. Here, the authors show that the nuclear orphan receptor, Nr4a2, is a transcriptional activator of Foxp3, and suggest that it is required for the function of regulatory T cells.

    • Takashi Sekiya
    • , Ikkou Kashiwagi
    •  & Akihiko Yoshimura

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Inflammation can result in the formation of tumours, but the immune system is also involved in the elimination of cancer cells. Here, the authors show that inflammation driven by tumour-specific CD4+T cells results in tumour regression and identify a list of cytokines associated with cancer prevention.

    • Ole Audun Werner Haabeth
    • , Kristina Berg Lorvik
    •  & Alexandre Corthay

  • Article
    | Open Access

    HIV infection can be partially regulated by the host immune system; however whether B cells contribute to this response is unclear. Huanget al. show that transient depletion of B cells can result in an increase in HIV viral load suggesting that these immune cells do participate in the control of HIV infection.

    • Kuan-Hsiang G. Huang
    • , David Bonsall
    •  & Paul Klenerman

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