News Releases & Research Results Fibroblasts prevent auto-immunity - discovery of novel mechanism of T cell training -

The results of R&D conducted by Associate Professor Takeshi Nitta and Professor Hiroshi Takayanagi of the Department of Immunology, Graduate School of Medicine and Faculty of Medicine, University of Tokyo, and others.

• Using mice, an isolation method was developed for fibroblasts specific to the thymus medulla before characterizing the gene expression profile and other properties.
• In addition, fibroblasts of the thymus medulla were found to generate autologous protein (self-antigen) and remove its reactive T cells, resulting in autoimmunity prevention.
• The results of R&D may contribute to an enhanced understanding of the basic principles of the immune system, leading to pathogenesis elucidation and treatment development of autoimmune diseases.

This project was conducted with the support of the Advanced Research and Development Programs for Medical Innovation (AMED-CREST) by AMED.

The results of R&D were published online in Nature Immunology on August 24.

Nitta T., et al. Fibroblasts as a source of self-antigens for central immune tolerance Nature Immunology
DOI：10.1038/s41590-020-0756-8