Volume 22

  • No. 12 December 2021

    Mitochondrial aspartate regulates TNF biogenesis

    The mechanisms that underlie the breakdown of self-tolerance in rheumatoid arthritis are unclear, but T cells in the arthritic joint have a distinctive metabolic signature of ATPlo acetyl-CoAhi pro-inflammatory effector cells. Weyand and colleagues show that a deficiency in mitochondrial aspartate production is an important abnormality in these autoimmune T cells.

    See Weyand

  • No. 11 November 2021

    Circadian clocks control DC migration

    Scheiermann and colleagues show that circadian clocks control the infiltration of dendritic cells into skin lymphatics in mice and humans, with a peak migration to the lymph nodes during the rest phase.

    See Holtkamp et al.

  • No. 10 October 2021

    Systemic viral infection impedes meningeal vascular repair after mTBI

    Traumatic brain injuries and stroke are commonly complicated by systemic infections, which impede recovery and lead to poor clinical outcomes. Using a mouse model, McGavern and colleagues show that systemic microbial infections impair CNS revascularization and repair by a mechanism involving type I interferon signaling.

    See McGavern

  • No. 9 September 2021

    Follicular helper T cell homeostasis

    T follicular helper (T FH ) cells are important for the generation of effective antibody responses. Yu and colleagues find that T FH cells are exceptionally sensitive to death by ferroptosis and this process is regulated by the activity of the selenoenzyme GPX4.

    See Yao et al.

  • No. 8 August 2021

    Epigenetic scarring of exhausted T cells

    Exhausted CD8+ T cells acquire a distinct epigenetic state, but it is not known whether that chromatin landscape is fixed or plastic following the resolution of chronic infection. Four independent groups, led by Haining, Laurer, Thimme and Hofmann, and Wherry, find that after cessation of chronic viral antigen stimulation, exhaustion leaves durable ‘epigenetic scars,’ constraining future immune responses by these T cells.

    See Haining, Lauer Thimme and Wherry

  • No. 7 July 2021

    ILC2-dependent antitumor immunity

    Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s) are generally considered to have protumor functions. However, Belz and colleagues demonstrate that ILC2s have anti-melanoma effects due to their high production of the inflammatory cytokine granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor in the tumor microenvironment.

    See Jacquelot et al.

  • No. 6 June 2021

    Metabolic reprogramming of exhausted T cells

    T cell exhaustion presents one of the major hurdles for cancer immunotherapy. Metabolic reprogramming by upregulating mitochondrial pyruvate carrier–dependent OXPHOS can revitalize terminally exhausted T cells and enhance the response to cancer immunotherapy.

    See Article Guo et al.

  • No. 5 May 2021

    Maintaining cDC homeostasis in lymphoid tissues

    Turley and colleagues identify a subset of T-zone fibroblastic reticular cells defined by the expression of Gremlin1 in lymph nodes that functions to maintain the homeostasis of lymphoid-tissue-resident conventional DCs.

    See Kapoor et al.

  • No. 4 April 2021

    Imprinting effector and stem-like memory cell fates

    Groom and colleagues have developed a method to quantify a cell’s 3D location to determine the spatial positioning that directs T cell fate. Lightsheet imaging revealed that intranodal migration into distinct niches determines CD8+ T cell differentiation following viral infection.

    See Duckworth et al.

  • No. 3 March 2021

    Coping with COVID

    The SARS-CoV-2 virus has spread worldwide in the past year, killing millions and disrupting normal daily life for many more. Nature Immunology introduces a new series ‘Coping with COVID’, wherein researchers and public health experts from across the globe describe their responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.

    See https://www.nature.com/collections/gaacigidef

  • No. 2 February 2021

    Promoting phagosomal rupture for cross-presentation

    The mechanism by which ingested material accesses the cytosol for cross-presentation is unclear. Caetano Reis e Sousa and colleagues demonstrate that signaling via the lectin receptor DNGR-1 ruptures the phagosome and releases its contents to the cytosol for cross-presentation.

    See Reis e Sousa

  • No. 1 January 2021

    Promoting neoantigen-specific stem-like T cells

    Seder and colleagues demonstrate improved antitumor efficacy by delivering a nanoparticle cancer vaccine intravenously. Single-cell RNA-seq analysis revealed a stem-like gene signature in neoantigen-specific CD8+ T cells.

    See Seder