Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain
the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in
Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles
and JavaScript.
Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling must be tightly regulated to avoid uncontrolled inflammation. A fifth Toll–interleukin 1 receptor adaptor domain, SARM, has been identified as an inhibitor of TLR3 and TLR4 signaling.
The establishment and replenishment of thymic epithelium and the persistence of epithelial progenitor cells into adult life were discussed at ThymOz-V 2006.
Transcription factor NF-κB is key in both the injury and repair of damaged tissues. Astrocytes use the non-canonical NF-κB activation pathway to modulate brain inflammation in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis.
Interleukin 17 (IL-17)–producing T cells are associated with inflammatory conditions. Two studies now show that IL-27, an IL-12 family member with both pro- and anti-inflammatory properties, potently suppresses the development of IL-17-producing T cells.
Whether natural killer T cells recognize antigens derived from dangerous pathogens remains unclear. New data demonstrate that a glycolipid from Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, directly stimulates mouse and human natural killer T cells.
The recently deduced structures of amphioxus immune-like receptors provide new insights on what is actually required for antigen recognition by antigen receptors.
Many aspects of the CD8+ T lymphocyte response are 'programmed' by inductive stimuli during primary activation. A recent Nature paper shows that interleukin 2 signals endow CD8 T cells with the capacity for secondary population expansion during priming.
Although γδ T cells were discovered fortuitously more than 20 years ago, their development remains enigmatic. Genetic evidence now suggests that γδ T lymphocytes undergo intrathymic positive selection.
Networks of transcription factors regulate cell fate 'decisions'. The forkhead protein Foxp1 is now identified as a key regulator of B cell development that influences the expression of recombination-activating genes.
Viruses have evolved several strategies to subvert host defenses. New evidence indicates that herpes simplex virus 1 prevents glycolipid antigen presentation to natural killer T cells by downregulating CD1d expression.
Cooperation between dendritic cell subtypes and a newly identified function for interleukin 15 demonstrate the complexity surrounding the initial events required for effective antipathogen immunity.
