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Transcriptional control of natural killer cell differentiation
Author(s) -
Brillantes Marc,
Beaulieu Aimee M.
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
immunology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.297
H-Index - 133
eISSN - 1365-2567
pISSN - 0019-2805
DOI - 10.1111/imm.13017
Subject(s) - cytotoxic t cell , biology , innate lymphoid cell , lymphokine activated killer cell , effector , acquired immune system , immune system , interleukin 21 , immunology , nk 92 , natural killer t cell , microbiology and biotechnology , progenitor cell , natural killer cell , interleukin 12 , stem cell , t cell , genetics , in vitro
Summary Natural killer ( NK ) cells are highly specialized cytotoxic lymphocytes that provide protection against pathogens and malignant cells. They develop from common lymphoid progenitors via a multi‐stage lineage commitment and differentiation process that gives rise to mature NK cells with potent cytotoxic functionality. Although generally considered cells of the innate immune system, recent studies have demonstrated that NK cells have the capacity to mount immune responses with features of adaptive immunity, including robust antigen‐specific clonal‐like expansion and the generation of long‐lived memory cells that mediate enhanced recall responses. Here, we discuss specific transcription factors that have been shown to commonly and uniquely regulate NK cell development and effector and memory responses in experimental mouse models.