Functional dichotomy of NK cells in organ transplantation.
Evaluation of: Yu G, Xu X, Vu MD, Kilpatrick ED, Li XC. NK cells promote transplant tolerance by killing donor antigen-presenting cells. J. Exp. Med. 203, 1851-1858 (2006). Natural killer (NK) cells have the potential to display different functional activities after transplantation. The traditional view is that NK cells have the capacity to contribute to rejection by facilitating the activation/differentiation of leukocytes that destroy the graft. By contrast, in the article under review, a novel role for NK cells was identified in the setting of costimulation blockade where alloreactive NK cells of recipient origin were found to have the capacity to kill donor-derived antigen-presenting cells, thereby reducing T-cell priming and promoting long-term skin graft acceptance.
Tha-In
Thanyalak
T
Transplantation Research Immunology Group, Nuffield Department of Surgery, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford OX3 9DU, UK. thanyalak.tha-in@nds.ox.ac.uk
Luo
Shiqiao
S
Bushell
Andrew R
AR
Wood
Kathryn J
KJ