Volume 19 Issue 2, February 2019

The mechanism of epigenetic modification of primed immune genes during β-glucan-induced trained immunity is shown to involve the function of the long non-coding RNA UMLILO within topologically associating domains of chromosome loops.

NLRP3 activators cause disassembly of the trans-Golgi network, and the dispersed trans-Golgi network serves as a scaffold for NLRP3 inflammasome assembly and activation.

Cristina Tato describes a 2013 study that used mass cytometry to investigate the receptor repertoire of natural killer (NK) cells, bringing to light new questions regarding NK cell maturation, functionality and memory potential.

Infant NEC is associated with high mortality and brain injury. This study sheds light on the connections between gut and brain pathology and shows that microglia-targeted dendrimers, coupled to antioxidants, can protect from brain injury in a NEC mouse model.

Commensal-specific T cells in the skin have built-in flexibility. They are pre-committed to a type 17 programme but are poised to produce type 2 cytokines following exposure to inflammatory mediators or tissue injury.

T_RM cells promote a melanoma–immune equilibrium that contains melanoma cells in the epidermis and prevents cancer progression.

Several clinical studies in 2018 documented the potency of therapies based on T cells with chimeric antigen receptors (CAR T cells), but also revealed mechanisms of resistance. These insights may facilitate the design of improved CAR T cell therapies for B cell malignancies and beyond.

Recent research in mucosal immunology has uncovered novel lines of communication between the mucosal immune system and other cellular and metabolic pathways. Given the complexity of these networks, new precision approaches are being developed to dissect the contribution of specific pathways or selected microorganisms.

The generation of an HIV vaccine remains the holy grail for eliminating HIV infection worldwide. Major advances in 2018 centred on sequential multi-immunogen strategies that are designed to induce broadly neutralizing antibodies, identifying new targets and defining new approaches to immunogen evaluation.

After many years of being largely neglected in neurodegenerative disease, the past few years have seen a turning point in the field’s view on the impact of microglia in neurological disorders.

The field of innate immunity has been rapidly evolving and expanding its horizons during the past few years. 2018 was no exception, with the publication of several ground-breaking studies that bring into light new activators, regulators and signalling networks that drive innate immune responses and inflammation.

The field of immunometabolism (both on the cellular as well as on the organismal level) is advancing rapidly. This article highlights several studies from 2018 that examine how immune cells can regulate systemic metabolism, as well as studies of the impact of organismal metabolism on the immune system in conditions such as obesity and cancer.

The study of B cell biology is a mature field, but highlights from the past year remind us that there are still many exciting and unexpected things to be discovered in terms of B cell responses to antigen, germinal centres and plasma cells.

Our knowledge of how the immune system changes with age has benefitted from a growing appreciation of the importance of systems-level analyses in humans. We are now beginning to uncover the global patterns of immune system development and decline in the young and the elderly.

Here, the author provides an overview of the spatial organization of the different subsets of dendritic cells in lymph nodes and spleen and discusses how the temporal microanatomy of secondary lymphoid organs allows for tailored and effective T cell immunity.

Statins are lipid-lowering drugs that are traditionally associated with the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Here, the authors consider the potential of harnessing statins to treat infectious diseases.

CARD protein–BCL-10–MALT1 (CBM) signalosomes are key regulators of innate and adaptive immunity and inflammation. This Review summarizes the regulation and function of CBM signalling for host defence and tissue homeostasis and the pathophysiological consequences of genetic CBM alterations in human disease.