Volume 11 Issue 2, February 2011

Dynamic energy sensing through the mTOR pathway controls regulatory T cell proliferation.

Mesenteric lymph node macrophages are protected from the pro-inflammatory effects of saturated fat.

T_H17 but not T_H1 cells are required for vaccine-induced protection from fungi.

A four-step model for arthritis development in the absence of cognate antigen recognition.

IRF5 is identified as a subset-defining transcription factor for M1 macrophages.

MicroRNA-124 expression ensures a resting phenotype in microglial cells.

ECM1 lets T_H2 cells out of lymph nodes; CCR8 gets them into allergic skin.

IL-4–STAT6 signalling regulates insulin sensitivity.

Fetal T cells are biased towards immune tolerance.

An introduction to immunometabolism: the scope and future opportunities in this emerging field.

Adipose tissues and infiltrating immune cells produce numerous bioactive factors that have pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory activities. Here, the authors describe how dysregulated production of these so-called adipokines can contribute to the pathogenesis of obesity-linked metabolic disease.

The cellular stresses that are proposed to underlie impaired insulin secretion and sensitivity in type 2 diabetes can also trigger inflammation. Here, the authors explain how inflammatory mechanisms are involved in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes and how this knowledge is directing immunomodulatory strategies for treating the disease.

In this Opinion article, David Finlay and Doreen Cantrell explore the molecular pathways that may link CD8⁺ T cell metabolism with effector versus memory CD8⁺T cell differentiation through the control of T cell migration.

This Review describes the recent progress we have made in understanding how regulatory T cell responses are tailored according to the particular nature of the immune environment. The authors discuss the implications for developing new therapies that harness the functions of regulatory T cells.

There is currently a lack of consensus as to whether defects in natural killer T (NKT) cells contribute to human diseases. Here, the authors explain how contrasting results may have arisen and suggest more stringent methods to improve NKT cell analysis and therapeutic prospects.

Here the authors describe how multiple pattern recognition receptors, at the host cell surface, in endosomes and in the cytoplasm, are involved in detecting herpesviruses. How do they each contribute to immune defence against the virus, and how does the virus evade this detection and persist in the host?

Obesity-linked metabolic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease, are associated with a state of low-grade inflammation. Recent research has elucidated many of the mediators and mechanisms that are involved in inflammation-associated metabolic disease. This Focus features articles that explore the interplay between metabolism and the immune system, explaining how inflammation drives type 2 diabetes, how fat-tissue-derived mediators are involved in inflammation and metabolic disease, and how T cell metabolism is linked to T cell fate.