Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 12, 2026
Identifying PD-1/PD-L1 Inhibitors with Surface Plasmon Resonance Technology
Published on: May 2, 2025
Manipulating the PD-1 pathway to improve immunity
Alice O Kamphorst1, Rafi Ahmed
1Emory Vaccine Center and Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory University School of Medicine, 1510 Clifton Road, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
PD-1 is an inhibitory receptor induced in T cells by antigen stimulation and sustained PD-1 expression plays a key role in T cell dysfunction. Blocking PD-1 signaling rescues exhausted T cells and is an effective treatment for chronic infections and cancer. Nonetheless, combining PD-1 pathway blockade to therapeutic vaccination should further improve T cell rescue. PD-1 is induced shortly after T cell priming, but little is known about the role of PD-1 in the initiation of immune responses. In addition, the PD-1 pathway may also modulate humoral responses, since both B cells and Tfh cells express PD-1. Therefore, even though much progress has been achieved by manipulation of the PD-1 pathway to rescue exhausted T cells, this powerful immunotherapy could still be further exploited.
PD-1 is an inhibitory receptor induced in T cells by antigen stimulation and sustained PD-1 expression plays a key role in T cell dysfunction. Blocking PD-1 signaling rescues exhausted T cells and is an effective treatment for chronic infections and cancer. Nonetheless, combining PD-1 pathway blockade to therapeutic vaccination should further improve T cell rescue. PD-1 is induced shortly after T cell priming, but little is known about the role of PD-1 in the initiation of immune responses. In addition, the PD-1 pathway may also modulate humoral responses, since both B cells and Tfh cells express PD-1. Therefore, even though much progress has been achieved by manipulation of the PD-1 pathway to rescue exhausted T cells, this powerful immunotherapy could still be further exploited.
