Innate lymphoid cells: A new paradigm in immunology

Abstract

Cells acting at the intersection of immunity For years, scientists divided the immune system into two arms: innate and adaptive. The cell types involved in the two arms differ in specificity and in how quickly they respond to infections. More recently, immunologists discovered a family of immune cells termed “innate lymphoid cells,” which straddle these two arms. Eberl et al. review current understanding of innate lymphoid cells. Like innate immune cells, they respond to infection quickly and do not express antigen receptors; however, they secrete a similar suite of inflammatory mediators as T lymphocytes. Better understanding of the processes regulating these cells may allow for their therapeutic manipulation. Science , this issue 10.1126/science.aaa6566