Volume 10 Issue 3, March 2010

CD8⁺lineage specification requires cytokine but not TCR signalling.

Virus-induced IFNs cause T_H2 cells to gain T_H1-type functions.

FOXO regulates AMP expression in response to starvation and disrupted insulin signalling.

Platelet-derived microparticles express IL-1 and promote joint inflammation.

Peptidoglycan from the gut microbiota enhances systemic innate immune function.

IL-21 receptor signalling by B cells prolongs germinal centre response.

Antibody binding to activating FcγRs establishes a pro-tumour environment

Although the vast numbers of commensal organisms that reside in the human gut are essential for health, they pose a continuous threat of invasion. The intestinal immune system has evolved unique immunological adaptations that help to maintain intestinal homeostasis.

The anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-10 (IL-10) has a central role in limiting inflammatory responses to protect against excessive tissue damage. Recent evidence suggests that many types of immune cell can produce IL-10, but how is its transcription regulated in these different cell types?

As a key regulator of the actin cytoskeleton, Wiskott–Aldrich syndrome protein (WASP) is involved in diverse immune responses, including leukocyte migration and activation. This Review describes how various mutations in mice and humans have led us to a greater appreciation of the many immunological functions of WASP.

How are memory cells maintained? In this Review, the authors discuss the emerging role of mesenchymal stromal cells — which organize defined numbers of dedicated survival niches for different types of memory lymphocytes — in the maintenance of immunological memory.

Haematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) can reside as dormant cells in endosteal niches in the bone marrow, where they are resistant to certain types of chemotherapy. In this article, the authors suggest that by first awakening dormant HSCs to become actively self-renewing cells, this resistance to chemotherapy could be overcome.

This Opinion article discusses the evidence for and the limitations of the three main models of inflammasome activation. The authors propose that the production of reactive oxygen species might be a common factor downstream of many types of inflammasome activator.