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Shared dependence on the DNA-binding factor TOX for the development of lymphoid tissue-inducer cell and NK cell

Parinaz Aliahmad1, Brian de la Torre, Jonathan Kaye

  • 1Department of Biomedical Sciences, Samuel Oschin Comprehensive Cancer Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, California, USA.

Nature Immunology
|September 7, 2010
PubMed

Insights

The transcription factor TOX is essential for the development of several immune cell types, including T cells and natural killer (NK) cells. Its absence impairs both immune cell maturation and the formation of lymphoid tissues.

Area of Science:

  • Immunology
  • Developmental Biology

Background:

  • TOX is a DNA-binding factor known to be crucial for the development of CD4(+) T cells, natural killer T cells, and regulatory T cells.
  • The precise role of TOX in broader immune system development and organogenesis remains incompletely understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the role of TOX in natural killer (NK) cell development and lymphoid tissue organogenesis.
  • To identify specific cell types and developmental stages dependent on TOX.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of mice lacking the TOX gene.
  • Flow cytometry to assess immune cell populations.
  • Histological examination of lymphoid tissues.

Main Results:

  • Absence of TOX significantly inhibited NK cell development and lymphoid tissue organogenesis.
  • Development of lymphoid tissue-inducer cells, critical for organogenesis, was dependent on TOX.
  • Tox expression was upregulated in immature NK cells, correlating with the loss of mature NK cells in TOX-deficient mice.

Conclusions:

  • TOX plays a vital role in NK cell development and lymphoid tissue formation.
  • Lymphoid tissue-inducer cell development is a TOX-dependent process.
  • Multiple immune cell lineages share a common TOX-dependent developmental pathway.

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