Article
Immunology
Shimeng Zhang, Lei Li, Danli Xie, Srija Reddy, John W. Sleasman, Li Ma, Xiao-Ping Zhong
Summary: Tsc1, a regulator for mTOR signaling, plays differential roles in Tfh cell/GC B cell responses in the steady state and in immune responses to antigen immunization. In the steady state, Tsc1 in T cells intrinsically suppresses spontaneous GC-Tfh cell differentiation and subsequent GC-B cell formation and autoantibody production. In immune responses to antigen immunization, Tsc1 in T cells is required for efficient GC-Tfh cell expansion, GC-B cell induction, and antigen-specific antibody responses, at least in part via promoting GC-Tfh cell mitochondrial integrity and survival.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Xiaofan Lu, Xin Zhang, Allen Ka Loon Cheung, Christiane Moog, Huan Xia, Zhen Li, Rui Wang, Yunxia Ji, Wei Xia, Zhiying Liu, Lin Yuan, Xiuwen Wang, Hao Wu, Tong Zhang, Bin Su
Summary: This study investigated the dynamics and relationship between circulating T follicular helper (Tfh) cells and B cells in individuals with acute and chronic HIV-1 infection. The results showed that HIV-1 infection leads to an increase in cTfh cells and certain B cell subsets during acute infection. The relationship between cTfh cells and B cells differed between acute and chronic infection stages.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Xindi Wei, Xiaoyin Niu
Summary: Tfh cells, a new subset of CD4+ T cells, mainly express CXCR5 and ICOS surface molecules, secrete IL-21, and require BCL-6 transcription factor. They exist in germinal centers (GCs) of lymphoid organs and peripheral blood, playing critical roles in B cell development, GC formation, and antibody production. Aberrant proliferation and function of Tfh cells contribute to autoimmune diseases, and they can potentially be used as therapeutic targets.
JOURNAL OF AUTOIMMUNITY
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Xiaomei Chen, Yulian Wang, Xin Huang, Suxia Geng, Chao Li, Lingji Zeng, Lisi Huang, Xin Du, Jianyu Weng, Peilong Lai
Summary: This study found that Bcl-6 inhibitor could prevent sclerodermatous chronic graft-versus-host disease in mice by inhibiting the function of T cells and the production of immunoglobulins, suggesting that Bcl-6 inhibition may be a potential treatment for patients with cGVHD.
INTERNATIONAL IMMUNOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Xinfang Huang, Shumeng Hao, Junli Liu, Yuanyuan Huang, Manman Liu, Chunyuan Xiao, Yan Wang, Siyu Pei, Tao Yu, Jing Xu, Haikun Wang, Dongfang Dai, Xiao Su, Yichuan Xiao
Summary: Peli1 is identified as a critical negative regulator of Tfh cell differentiation, promoting autoimmune diseases while protecting against H1N1 influenza virus infection. Targeting Peli1 may have therapeutic benefits for Tfh-related autoimmune or infectious diseases.
CELLULAR & MOLECULAR IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Matthew T. T. Ollerton, Joy M. M. Folkvord, Andriana La Mantia, David A. A. Parry, Amie L. L. Meditz, Martin D. D. McCarter, Richard T. D'Aquila, Elizabeth Connick
Summary: Follicular helper CD4(+) T cells (TFH) are major sites of HIV replication, but follicular regulatory CD4(+) T cells (TFR) limit HIV replication by suppressing TFH through IL-2 restriction. TFR reduce TFH viability and HIV infected TFH, and IL-2 enhances TFH viability but decreases HIV replication in the presence of TFR.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Cardiac & Cardiovascular Systems
Fabienne Burger, Kapka Miteva, Daniela Baptista, Aline Roth, Rodrigo A. Fraga-Silva, Catherine Martel, Nikolaos Stergiopulos, Francois Mach, Karim J. Brandt
Summary: The study shows that follicular regulatory helper T cells (T-FR) can control regulatory B cell (B-REG) populations in mice models on a high-cholesterol diet, leading to the suppression of proatherogenic processes. This suggests that T-FR cells may have atheroprotective effects by modulating immune processes related to atherosclerosis.
CARDIOVASCULAR RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Dornatien Chuo Anang, Tamara H. Ramwadhdoebe, Janine S. Hahnlein, Bo van Kuijk, Noortje Smits, Krijn P. van Lienden, Mario Maas, Danielle M. Gerlag, Paul P. Tak, Niek de Vries, Lisa G. M. van Baarsen
Summary: In early RA patients and individuals at risk for RA, there is an increase in Tfh cells in lymphoid tissues with decreased IL-21 production.
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Shengxia Yin, Jian Wang, Lin Chen, Minxin Mao, Rahma Issa, Yu Geng, Rui Huang, Xin Tong, Yong Liu, Chao Wu, Yuxin Chen, Jie Li
Summary: Failure to cure chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection can impair B cell function. This study found that CTLA4 regulates B cell and T follicular helper (Tfh) cell differentiation, and that upregulation of CTLA4 in cTfh cells is associated with decreased HBsAg-specific resting memory B cells. Inhibition of CTLA4 restored HBsAb secretion and promoted plasma cell differentiation. These findings suggest that optimizing Tfh cell responses may lead to a functional cure for chronic HBV infection.
ANTIVIRAL RESEARCH
(2023)
Article
Critical Care Medicine
Laura Bauer, Lisa Jasmin Mueller, Sarah M. Volkers, Frederik Heinrich, Mir-Farzin Mashreghi, Clemens Ruppert, Leif E. Sander, Andreas Hutloff
Summary: Pulmonary sarcoidosis is driven not only by T-helper type 1 cells and macrophages, but also by T follicular helper-like cells and germinal center-like reactions in the inflamed lung tissue. This new pathomechanism of active T-cell/B-cell cooperation and local production of potentially pathogenic antibodies should be taken into consideration for diagnosis and treatment.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF RESPIRATORY AND CRITICAL CARE MEDICINE
(2021)
Review
Immunology
Yisi Lu, Joe Craft
Summary: T follicular regulatory cells are a unique subset of regulatory T cells that migrate to B cell follicles and germinal centers to maintain immune homeostasis. They use specific transcription factors to regulate immune responses, promoting humoral immunity and memory following viral infections.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Pediatrics
Lin Xu, Dilreba Tayier, Shufen Yang, Xueqin Zhang, Chen Lu
Summary: This study investigates the role of Tfh cells and Tfr cells in immune disorders of IMN. It found that IMN patients have higher percentages of B cells, Tfh cells, Tfr cells, Tfr / Tfh ratio, IL-6, IL-17A, and IL-21 compared to healthy controls. Furthermore, the co-culture system showed abnormal expression of CTLA-4 and PD-1.
INDIAN JOURNAL OF PEDIATRICS
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Xin Jin, Jia Chen, Jian Wu, Ying Lu, Baohua Li, Wenning Fu, Wei Wang, Dawei Cui
Summary: This study found significant differences in the frequency of cTfh cell subsets and associated B cell subsets between active and inactive SLE patients, with elevated levels of cytokines associated with cTfh cells in active SLE patients. Additionally, Tfh cell subsets and plasmablasts may have important roles in the pathogenesis of SLE and could be potential targets for therapeutic interventions.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Jian Lu, Jing Wu, Xueli Xia, Huiyong Peng, Shengjun Wang
Summary: RA is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by joint and systemic inflammation, with Tfh cells playing a crucial role in the pathogenesis of the disease and affecting disease activity.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES
(2021)
Review
Immunology
Amania A. Sheikh, Joanna R. Groom
Summary: During viral infection, CD4(+) T cells differentiate into Th1 cells for inflammation and pathogen clearance, or Tfh cells for enhancing germinal center reactions. The lineage-defining transcription factors T-bet and Bcl6 play key roles in determining the fate of CD4(+) T cells toward Th1 or Tfh. Transcriptional networks guided by cytokine cues dynamically shape the fate and function of these cells during infection.
CELLULAR & MOLECULAR IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Correction
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Bo Liu, Yihan Lin, Jiacong Yan, Jiacheng Yao, Dan Liu, Weiwei Ma, Jianbin Wang, Wanli Liu, Chengshuo Wang, Luo Zhang, Hai Qi
Article
Immunology
Dan Liu, Jiacong Yan, Jiahui Sun, Bo Liu, Weiwei Ma, Ye Li, Xingxing Shao, Hai Qi
Summary: BCL6 is crucial for the development of follicular T helper (Tfh) cells and germinal center (GC) formation. It affects Tfh calcium signaling and controls their interaction with B cells, as well as the delivery of CD40L. Additionally, changes in T-B cell interactions can impact BCL6 protein levels and Tfh cell frequencies.
Article
Immunology
Mingxi Li, Jingao Guo, Shuaiyao Lu, Runhong Zhou, Hongyang Shi, Xuanling Shi, Lin Cheng, Qingtai Liang, Hongqi Liu, Pui Wang, Nan Wang, Yifeng Wang, Lili Fu, Man Xing, Ruoke Wang, Bin Ju, Li Liu, Siu-Ying Lau, Wenxu Jia, Xin Tong, Lin Yuan, Yong Guo, Hai Qi, Qi Zhang, Zhen Huang, Honglin Chen, Zheng Zhang, Zhiwei Chen, Xiaozhong Peng, Dongming Zhou, Linqi Zhang
Summary: Researchers have developed novel SARS-CoV-2 vaccines based on a derivative of the rare adenovirus AdC68, which induced robust protective immune responses in experimental animals and shows potential for human vaccine development.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Xin Liu, Yongshan Zhao, Hai Qi
Summary: This study reveals that T-independent antigens can induce germinal center formation, which is crucial for the persistence of memory B cells and plasma cells. This finding contributes to understanding the mechanism of T-independent humoral memory and provides potential strategies for effective T-independent antigen vaccines.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Xin Chen, Liu Xue, Xiao Ding, Jing Zhang, Lei Jiang, Sha Liu, Hongjia Hou, Bin Jiang, Liang Cheng, Qing Zhu, Lijie Zhang, Xiaosui Zhou, Jie Ma, Qi Liu, Yucheng Li, Zhiying Ren, Beibei Jiang, Xiaomin Song, Jing Song, Wei Jin, Min Wei, Zhirong Shen, Xuesong Liu, Lai Wang, Kang Li, Tong Zhang
Summary: TIGIT (T-cell immunoglobulin and ITIM domain) is a promising target in cancer immunotherapy. This research characterized a novel anti-TIGIT antibody (BGB-A1217) and evaluated its anti-tumor activities, showing that BGB-A1217 significantly enhances T-cell functions and induces immune responses and anti-tumor efficacy in pre-clinical models. The Fc effector function is critical for the anti-tumor activity of BGB-A1217.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Editorial Material
Immunology
Xin Chen, Chengcheng Jin, Andrea Facciabene, Xiaohuan Guo, Yanbo Zhang
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Qingtai Liang, Yifeng Wang, Shuyuan Zhang, Jing Sun, Wenbo Sun, Jizhou Li, Yaping Liu, Mingxi Li, Lin Cheng, Yuhang Jiang, Ruoke Wang, Rui Zhang, Zihan Yang, Yifei Ren, Peng Chen, Peng Gao, Huayuan Yan, Zheng Zhang, Qi Zhang, Xuanling Shi, Jianbin Wang, Wanli Liu, Xinquan Wang, Bo Ying, Jincun Zhao, Hai Qi, Linqi Zhang
Summary: With the rapid emergence and spread of SARS-CoV-2 variants, the development of vaccines with broad and potent protectivity has become a global priority. In this study, a lipid nanoparticle-encapsulated mRNA vaccine encoding the trimerized receptor-binding domain (RBD trimer) was designed and shown to induce broad and protective immune responses against wild-type and major variants of concern (VOCs) in a mouse model of SARS-CoV-2 infection. The protectivity was associated with RBD-specific B cell responses, particularly long-lived plasma B cells in the bone marrow, strong ability to trigger BCR clustering, and downstream signaling.
Review
Immunology
Hai Qi, Bo Liu, Xinquan Wang, Linqi Zhang
Summary: This review summarizes key observations of humoral immune responses in people with COVID-19, discusses key features of infection- and vaccine-induced neutralizing antibodies, and explores vaccine designs for inducing broadly protective antibodies against different variants of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
Review
Immunology
Xin Chen, Lei Jiang, Xuesong Liu
Summary: This review discusses the contributions of natural killer (NK) cells in cancer treatment, explores the current strategies at harnessing NK cells for cancer treatment, and highlights the importance of NK cell-mediated therapies in the next wave of cancer immunotherapy.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Immunology
Xin Liu, Jiacheng Yao, Yongshan Zhao, Jianbin Wang, Hai Qi
Summary: Durable antibody immunity relies on long-lived plasma cells, and new research methods have revealed the phenotypes, heterogeneity, and development pathways of these cells.
Review
Neurosciences
Zhiwei You, Bo Liu, Hai Qi
Summary: The brain has the ability to influence the operation of the immune system, specifically in regards to antibody response and antibody-mediated immunity. The brain-spleen axis plays a crucial role in regulating antigen-specific B cell responses.
Article
Immunology
Yingjiao Cao, Yu Li, Xiangyang Wang, Shaorui Liu, Yongmei Zhang, Gaoyu Liu, Shusen Ye, Yuhao Zheng, Jiacong Zhao, Xiaodong Zhu, Yingying Chen, Haixu Xu, Dingyun Feng, Dubo Chen, Ling Chen, Wangkai Liu, Wenjie Zhou, Zhi Zhang, Pan Zhou, Kai Deng, Lilin Ye, Ying Yu, Zhi Yao, Qiang Liu, Heping Xu, Jie Zhou
Summary: Neuronal signals play a crucial role in regulating group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2s), which are important in tissue homeostasis and allergic inflammation. It has been found that the neurotransmitter dopamine is negatively correlated with the number of circulating ILC2s and positively associated with pulmonary function. Dopamine can suppress lung ILC2 responses through the DRD1 receptor. These findings demonstrate that dopamine acts as an inhibitory regulator of ILC2 responses in allergic airway inflammation.
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Zhengpeng Wan, Marie A. Floryan, Mark F. Coughlin, Shun Zhang, Amy X. Zhong, Sarah E. Shelton, Xun Wang, Chenguang Xu, David A. Barbie, Roger D. Kamm
Summary: Previous studies have developed vascularized tumor spheroid models to study the impact of intravascular flow on tumor progression and treatment. However, these models have not been widely adopted, resulting in lower vascularization levels compared to in vivo tumor tissues. In this study, a new strategy is introduced to improve tumor vascularization by adding fibroblasts to pre-formed tumor spheroids. The results show that tumor spheroids made with this strategy have higher fibroblast densities, leading to enhanced vascularization.
ADVANCED HEALTHCARE MATERIALS
(2023)
Article
Immunology
Xing Zhou, Jiacheng Wei, Liang Li, Zhenfeng Shu, Ling You, Yang Liu, Ruozhu Zhao, Jiacheng Yao, Jianbin Wang, Minmin Luo, Yousheng Shu, Kexin Yuan, Hai Qi
Summary: Abnormalities in microglia, especially the loss of PTEN, can contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorders. In this study, the deletion of PTEN in microglia in mice led to deficits in sociability and object recognition. Mutant mice showed an increased number of activated microglia with enhanced phagocytosis. Interestingly, delaying the PTEN deletion in microglia for two weeks did not result in social interaction defects, although the mutant microglia remained abnormal in adult animals. The disturbed neurodevelopment caused by early PTEN deletion in microglia was characterized by decreased VGLUT1 protein in synaptosomes, which may be a consequence of enhanced removal by microglia. In vitro recordings also demonstrated weakened synaptic inputs in the developing cortex. Therefore, microglial PTEN plays a crucial role in maintaining the integrity of neural substrates underlying sociability during development.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Medicine, Research & Experimental
Bing Yang, Zhen Zhang, Xiangjun Chen, Xu-Yan Wang, Shishang Qin, Liaoqi Du, Changjiang Yang, Liyu Zhu, Wenbo Sun, Yongjie Zhu, Qinwen Zheng, Shidong Zhao, Quan Wang, Long Zhao, Yilin Lin, Jinghe Huang, Fan Wu, Lu Lu, Fei Wang, Wenjie Zheng, Xiao-Hua Zhou, Xiaozhen Zhao, Ziye Wang, Sun Xiao-Lin, Yingjiang Ye, Shan Wang, Zhanguo Li, Hai Qi, Zemin Zhang, Dong-Ming Kuang, Lei Zhang, Zhanlong Shen, Wanli Liu
Summary: A variant of human IgG1 specific to Asia has been found to improve survival of colorectal cancer patients. This variant enhances the differentiation of tumor-associated antigen-specific plasma cells and antibody production, leading to improved phagocytosis of tumor cells and presentation to CD8' T cells. Transplantation of memory B cells with this variant has shown therapeutic efficacy in mouse tumor models.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL INVESTIGATION
(2022)