Innate lymphoid cells play a role in early tuberculosis infection

A class of immune cells termed innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) play a pivotal role in the initial host defence against tuberculosis, according to new research published in Nature.

ILCs, a class of immune cells only identified in the past decade, straddle the two arms of the immune system (innate and adaptive), providing quick, nonspecific responses against pathogens but also possessing the ability to mount protective immune responses against specific pathogens.

In this study, which was supported in-part by the National Institutes of Health (MD, USA), the team assessed what role this class of immune cells could play in tuberculosis infection and immunity.