| First Author | Nakayamada S | Year | 2011 |
| Journal | Immunity | Volume | 35 |
| Issue | 6 | Pages | 919-31 |
| PubMed ID | 22195747 | Mgi Jnum | J:179278 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:5301737 | Doi | 10.1016/j.immuni.2011.11.012 |
| Citation | Nakayamada S, et al. (2011) Early Th1 Cell Differentiation Is Marked by a Tfh Cell-like Transition. Immunity 35(6):919-31 |
| abstractText | Follicular helper T (Tfh) cells comprise an important subset of helper T cells; however, their relationship with other helper lineages is incompletely understood. Herein, we showed interleukin-12 acting via the transcription factor STAT4 induced both Il21 and Bcl6 genes, generating cells with features of both Tfh and Th1 cells. However, STAT4 also induced the transcription factor T-bet. With ChIP-seq, we defined the genome-wide targets of T-bet and found that it repressed Bcl6 and other markers of Tfh cells, thereby attenuating the nascent Tfh cell-like phenotype in the late phase of Th1 cell specification. Tfh-like cells were rapidly generated after Toxoplasma gondii infection in mice, but T-bet constrained Tfh cell expansion and consequent germinal center formation and antibody production. Our data argue that Tfh and Th1 cells share a transitional stage through the signal mediated by STAT4, which promotes both phenotypes. However, T-bet represses Tfh cell functionalities, promoting full Th1 cell differentiation. |
