Nature ImmunologyPub Date : 2026-04-13DOI: 10.1038/s41590-026-02494-7
Yoon-Chul Kye, Vijay K. Kuchroo
{"title":"The dual role of TOX in regulating TH1 and CD8+ T cell fate","authors":"Yoon-Chul Kye, Vijay K. Kuchroo","doi":"10.1038/s41590-026-02494-7","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41590-026-02494-7","url":null,"abstract":"Chronic antigen exposure drives TOX expression in CD8+ T cells and is associated with an exhausted hypofunctional T cell state. By contrast, data now show that the function of TOX in CD4+ T cells defines the TH1 lineage and supports the effector function of these cells.","PeriodicalId":19032,"journal":{"name":"Nature Immunology","volume":"27 5","pages":"886-887"},"PeriodicalIF":27.6,"publicationDate":"2026-04-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147666453","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature ImmunologyPub Date : 2026-04-13DOI: 10.1038/s41590-026-02493-8
Ryan P. Mansell, Whitney S. Henry
{"title":"Diet-induced metabolic memory shapes CD8+ T cell ferroptosis susceptibility","authors":"Ryan P. Mansell, Whitney S. Henry","doi":"10.1038/s41590-026-02493-8","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41590-026-02493-8","url":null,"abstract":"Metabolic stress is associated with impaired immunity, yet underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Description of a xanthine-dependent antioxidant program that shields CD8+ T cells from ferroptosis reveals a metabolically actionable axis that control anti-tumor responses.","PeriodicalId":19032,"journal":{"name":"Nature Immunology","volume":"27 5","pages":"894-895"},"PeriodicalIF":27.6,"publicationDate":"2026-04-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147666450","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature ImmunologyPub Date : 2026-04-06DOI: 10.1038/s41590-026-02492-9
Mariano Malamud, Gordon D. Brown
{"title":"Flipping sides in NETosis","authors":"Mariano Malamud, Gordon D. Brown","doi":"10.1038/s41590-026-02492-9","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41590-026-02492-9","url":null,"abstract":"Disruption of lipid asymmetry is not only a consequence of cell death but also a decisive step in the formation of neutrophil extracellular traps.","PeriodicalId":19032,"journal":{"name":"Nature Immunology","volume":"27 5","pages":"892-893"},"PeriodicalIF":27.6,"publicationDate":"2026-04-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147628103","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature ImmunologyPub Date : 2026-04-03DOI: 10.1038/s41590-026-02483-w
Fangwei Leng, Yu-San Huoh, Sun Hur
{"title":"Multimerizing transcription factors FOXP3 and AIRE as chromatin architectural regulators","authors":"Fangwei Leng, Yu-San Huoh, Sun Hur","doi":"10.1038/s41590-026-02483-w","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41590-026-02483-w","url":null,"abstract":"Central and peripheral immune tolerance depend on distinct transcriptional programs orchestrated by autoimmune regulator (AIRE) and FOXP3, respectively. AIRE promotes the expression of peripheral tissue antigens in medullary thymic epithelial cells for negative selection of autoreactive T cells, whereas FOXP3 enforces the immune-suppressive program of regulatory T cells. Although their immunological roles are well established, the molecular mechanisms by which AIRE and FOXP3 engage the genome and regulate transcription have long been unclear. Recent structural, biochemical and genomic work has revealed an unexpected shared principle: both FOXP3 and AIRE form homomultimers that function as chromatin organizers. Despite functioning in different immunological contexts and possessing distinct modes of genome interaction, both proteins leverage and reinforce pre-existing chromatin landscapes to coordinate broader gene expression programs. In this Review, we summarize recent advances and emerging mechanistic insights into FOXP3 and AIRE, focusing on their multimerization, interactions with repetitive DNA and enhancers and roles as architectural regulators that shape transcriptional programs essential for immune tolerance. Hur and colleagues review recent developments to provide insights into the molecular mechanisms and regulatory functions of the transcriptional regulators FOXP3 and AIRE.","PeriodicalId":19032,"journal":{"name":"Nature Immunology","volume":"27 5","pages":"900-911"},"PeriodicalIF":27.6,"publicationDate":"2026-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147611920","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature ImmunologyPub Date : 2026-04-03DOI: 10.1038/s41590-026-02503-9
{"title":"Newly found macrophages stand guard inside blood vessels","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41590-026-02503-9","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41590-026-02503-9","url":null,"abstract":"Using high-resolution live imaging in zebrafish, we discovered a population of macrophages residing within blood vessels, termed blood vessel-resident macrophages. These cells clear foreign particles and unfit cells from the circulation and rapidly respond to endothelial injury. Blood vessel-resident macrophages therefore constitute a dedicated immune population that safeguards blood and vascular integrity.","PeriodicalId":19032,"journal":{"name":"Nature Immunology","volume":"27 5","pages":"898-899"},"PeriodicalIF":27.6,"publicationDate":"2026-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147611814","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Nature ImmunologyPub Date : 2026-04-03DOI: 10.1038/s41590-026-02500-y
{"title":"Engineering metabolite-sensing NK and T cells to target solid tumors","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41590-026-02500-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41590-026-02500-y","url":null,"abstract":"Through CRISPR activation screens, we discovered that metabolite-sensing receptors can be used to mobilize natural killer cells and T cells toward solid tumors. Aberrant tumor metabolism is routinely used for diagnosis. Our work now shows that tumor metabolism can be leveraged for therapeutics through the design of tumor-targeted metabolite-sensing effector immune cells.","PeriodicalId":19032,"journal":{"name":"Nature Immunology","volume":"27 5","pages":"896-897"},"PeriodicalIF":27.6,"publicationDate":"2026-04-03","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147611919","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A unique CD4⁺ T cell subset expressing granzyme K is regulated by transcription factor EOMES and important for T cell-mediated intestinal inflammation.","authors":"Tian Xie,Yizhou Du,Qihan Wang,Hao Zhang,Kun Wei,Xinxin Chi,Xue Bai,Yujie Fu,Zhilin Peng,Yicheng Zhu,Qiuyan Lan,Chen Dong","doi":"10.1038/s41590-026-02479-6","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41590-026-02479-6","url":null,"abstract":"CD4⁺ helper T (TH) cells consist of multiple functional subsets defined by specific effector cytokines and transcription factors. Recently, single-cell transcriptomic analyses have revealed possible existence of additional populations. Here we identify a unique CD4⁺ T cell subset in mouse and human colitis characterized by high levels of granzyme K (Gzmk) expression, designated as THK cells. These cells exhibit unique transcriptional signatures, with minimal expression of classical TH-defining factors but rather prominent Eomesodermin (Eomes) expression. Notably, THK cell differentiation is independent of TH1, TH2 and TH17 lineages in colitis. EOMES is both necessary and sufficient for THK cell induction, by directly driving the expression of Gzmk and associated effector molecules. Genetic ablation of Eomes ameliorates intestinal immunopathology in a T cell-induced colitis model. The THK transcriptional program seems to be conserved across species and in diverse disease contexts. Our findings establish THK cells as a distinct TH cell subtype, and the EOMES-THK axis may serve as a potential therapeutic target in inflammatory diseases.","PeriodicalId":19032,"journal":{"name":"Nature Immunology","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":30.5,"publicationDate":"2026-04-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147599472","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}