title: Blimp1: driving terminal differentiation to a T.
abstract: B lymphocyte maturation-induced protein-1 (Blimp1) is a transcriptional repressor expressed in diverse cell types. In the adaptive immune system, Blimp1 is expressed in lymphocytes that have undergone effector differentiation. Blimp1 is a master regulator of plasma cell differentiation and plays important roles in controlling T cell homeostasis and effector differentiation. Blimp1 can be induced by a variety of cytokines including IL-2, IL-4, IL-12, and IL-21 in addition to TCR and co-stimulatory signals. Blimp1-deficient mice develop spontaneous inflammatory disease mediated by infiltration of activated T cells into tissues. During immune responses Blimp1 is required for the differentiation of plasma cells as well as short-lived CD8(+) cytotoxic T cells. Mounting evidence suggests that Blimp1 plays a common role in the terminal differentiation of multiple cell subsets.
authors.forename: Annie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Xin
authors.forename: Stephen L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Nutt
authors.forename: Gabrielle T
authors.initials: GT
authors.lastname: Belz
authors.forename: Axel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kallies
mesh_terms: D056704:Adaptive Immunity; D000818:Animals; D001402:B-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D018414:CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000276:immunology; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation / Q000276:immunology; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000276:immunology; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D010950:Plasma Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D000074462:Positive Regulatory Domain I-Binding Factor 1; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000276:immunology; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism; D014158:Transcription, Genetic / Q000276:immunology
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; C513258:Prdm1 protein, mouse; D014157:Transcription Factors; D000074462:Positive Regulatory Domain I-Binding Factor 1