Nature Communications
11/2023
Genetic architecture may be key to using peacekeeping immune cells to treat autoimmunity or fight cancer
Regulatory T cells are specialized immune cells that suppress the immune response and prevent the body from attacking its own cells. The behavior of these cells is influenced by chromatin architecture (the 3D shape of chromosomes) and which genes are accessible to proteins like Foxp3. Now, Professor Ye Zheng, Assistant Professor Jesse Dixon, co-first authors Dongsung Lee and Zhi Liu, and colleagues have discovered that Foxp3 is essential for creating the unique chromatin architecture of regulatory T cells and, in turn, promoting their immune suppressive function.
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