Editorial: Regulatory T cells in graft versus host disease

Abstract

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are modulators of the immune system that play a key role in maintaining self-tolerance. Treg were initially identified by Sakaguchi as CD4+CD25+ T cells that have the ability to suppress autoimmune responses. They were further shown to rely on the expression of the transcription factor FOXP3, whose loss leads to a lethal autoimmune condition, the IPEX syndrome.

The importance of Tregs to the outcome of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) was soon brought into focus. Allogeneic T cells present in the graft induce thymic tissue damage resulting in impaired production of Tregs leading to a loss of immune-tolerance. Importantly, quantitative and qualitative abnormalities of Tregs have been correlated with GvHD (Graft versus Host Disease) development and prognosis. This collection addresses various strategies to modulate Treg numbers after HSCT, as means to control GVHD.

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