New studies conducted by the Columbia University Medical Centre or CUMC, have revealed that the immune system helps to safeguard the body from the impact of atherosclerotic lesions with the help of a T cell. The findings are proving to be invaluable in the design of anti-atherosclerotic vaccines and treatments, and help to demonstrate just how powerful and complex the body’s immune system can be.
When the body hosts invading foreign-bodies that can harm it, certain properties within the immune system are activated so the bodies are analysed and presented to T cells for risk-assessment. This leads to the production of anti-inflammatory regulatory cells and pro-inflammatory T cells that work together to prevent harm to the body.
In recent tests, mice were used to assess how T cells are affected by the size of atherosclerotic lesions, and a new mechanism was identified that directly links regulatory T cell activation with protection from atherosclerosis. The mice used in the research, possessed cells which lacked MYD88-protein that helps cells to develop and mature so they are able to function correctly. As undeveloped cells cannot activate T cells – the absence of MYD88 halted the production of both effector and regulatory T cells – leaving mice prone to the development of atherosclerosis.
Previous studies had suggested that the opposite would happen, according to Dr Tabas at the CUMC:
“In those studies, researchers disabled cells at an earlier stage, creating all sorts of compensatory processes,” said Dr. Tabas. “That’s probably why they came to a different conclusion. In our model, we were able to knock out only the step involved in activating T cells, leaving everything else alone.”
These findings can help produce vaccines that are more effective and foster a greater understanding of how T cells operate within the body.
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