2026-09-18
Katrin Kierdorf, Markus Sperandio, Mathias W. Hornef, Philipp Henneke
Immune plasticity during the perinatal period enables mammalian offspring to successfully navigate the transition from prenatal, intrauterine life to postnatal, extrauterine life. This Review highlights recent advances in our understanding of perinatal immune plasticity and the factors that modulate it, with implications for neonatal health and disease.
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01354-72026-09-17
Pau Garcia-Baucells, Manuel Serrano, Corina Amor
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01360-92026-09-16
Rafal Hanc, Robin Demuynck, Dmitri V. Krysko
The formation of tertiary lymphoid structures (TLSs) has been associated with better outcomes in patients with certain tumours. Here the authors discuss how immunogenic cell death can lead to the formation of TLSs and explain why this knowledge could help us design better cancer therapies.
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01356-52026-09-02
Sebastian Serve, Max Löhning
This Review summarizes our current understanding of the immunological roles of IL-33 and the IL-33 receptor, also known as ST2. The authors focus on the effects of IL-33 in different disease settings, including infections, cancer, autoimmunity, chronic inflammation and allergy. They further discuss emerging clinical data from studies targeting IL-33 receptor signalling in disease.
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01345-82026-08-27
Josef Shin, Christina Francisca Vogelaar, Stefan Bittner, Frauke Zipp
Excessive glutamate receptor signalling contributes to central nervous system pathology in different neurological settings, including in epilepsy, Parkinson disease and multiple sclerosis. Here, the authors discuss the need to integrate the immune system along with glutamate-centric mechanisms as a core driver of excitotoxic pathology. They suggest that this concept of ‘immune-mediated excitotoxicity’ can help us develop better therapeutic interventions for various neurological conditions.
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01348-52026-08-27
Shaocun Zhang, Yu Wang, Wanli Liu
Epigenetic programmes collectively orchestrate B cell development, activation, germinal centre responses and the maintenance of self-tolerance. This Review examines how layered epigenetic mechanisms govern normal B cell function and enforce self-tolerance, and how their dysregulation breaches successive tolerance checkpoints to drive autoreactive B cell emergence and autoantibody production in systemic autoimmune disease.
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01344-92026-08-25
Ira Mellman
Checkpoint inhibitors, CAR T cells and bispecific T cell engagers have demonstrated the transformative potential of cancer immunotherapy. However, progress has slowed as efforts have focused on replicating PD-(L)1 blockade successes, highlighting the need for deeper understanding of human cancer immunity.
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01352-92026-08-24
Laura K. Mackay
The discoveries that have transformed immunology often seem obvious in retrospect. Yet none began as an inevitable destination. They began with observations that did not fit, assumptions that somebody challenged, or questions that nobody yet realized were important. Discovery was the outcome. Surprise was the process.
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01351-w2026-07-23
Sarah A. Teichmann
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 23 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01340-z Understanding human biology in health and disease has entered a new era, one defined not just by better tools but by a fundamental shift in how biological knowledge is generated.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01340-z2026-07-22
Sandhya Yadav
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 22 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01342-x A preprint by Delclaux et al. reports that dendritic cells recirculate tumour antigen to the draining lymph nodes to re-engage tumour-egressed T cells and sustain the antitumour response.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01342-x2026-07-16
Akshat Sharma
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 16 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01330-1 Interleukin-18 (IL-18) shapes tumour immunity through tightly regulated, context-dependent effects on T cells, NK cells and the tumour microenvironment. Emerging therapeutic strategies, including engineered cellular therapies and decoy-resistant variants, aim to harness IL-18 signalling to enhance antitumour responses while overcoming regulatory constraints.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01330-12026-07-14
Tomislav Kostevc
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 14 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01338-7 A preprint by Lunger et al. reports macrophage engineering through constitutively active synthetic cytokine receptors to induce polarization states that are unobtainable with natural cytokine receptors.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01338-72026-07-09
Erinke van Grinsven
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 09 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01339-6 Author Correction: Shaping neutrophil morphology and function: the importance of a segmented nucleus]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01339-62026-07-02
Hind Rafei
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 02 July 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01322-1 This Review traces the development of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy from foundational immunology to approved products, highlighting clinical successes, engineering advances, safety strategies and ongoing challenges in extending durable responses beyond haematological malignancies.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01322-12026-06-30
Rafi Ahmed
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 30 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01328-9 In this Viewpoint, eight experts from the field of T cell exhaustion discuss current understanding of the self-renewing population of PD1+TCF1+TOX+ precursor and/or progenitor exhausted CD8+ T cells and controversies related to their development and function.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01328-92026-06-23
Hai Qi
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 23 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01325-y Twentieth-century immunology was shaped by questions of recognition, diversity, response and tolerance. The next era may be defined by a different class of questions: how immune activity is embedded in organ physiology, inter-organ homeostasis and human biology.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01325-y2026-06-19
Annette Wu
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 19 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01316-z This article leverages existing preclinical and clinical evidence to propose an immunological framework that reconciles four axes controlling the efficacy of mRNA cancer vaccines: adjuvanticity versus immunopathology, antigen immunogenicity versus tolerance, adaptive immune memory versus exhaustion, and beneficial versus maladaptive trained immunity.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01316-z2026-06-03
Hong-Gyun Lee
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 03 June 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01313-2 A growing appreciation of the diversity of glial cells, including astrocytes, microglia and oligodendrocytes, is providing new insights into their roles in multiple sclerosis. This Review describes their complex interactions and regulatory roles in neuroinflammation, demyelination and neurodegeneration, highlighting potential therapeutic strategies targeting these cells in chronic inflammatory diseases of the central nervous system.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01313-22026-05-11
Lucy Bird
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 11 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01311-4 Macrophages continuously ‘nibble’ healthy neighbouring cells, capturing minute amounts of cytosolic material that are preserved in specialized vesicles and preferentially routed for cross-presentation to CD8+ T cells.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01311-42026-05-06
Mohamed Lamkanfi
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 06 May 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01304-3 This Review compares the structure–function relationships of the apoptosome, inflammasomes and PIDDosome, which are the three main platforms activating the CARD-containing caspases caspase-9, caspase-1 and caspase-2, respectively. It highlights the consequences of genetic perturbations of these platforms and their therapeutic potential in humans.]]>
DOI: 10.1038/s41577-026-01304-32026-03-30
Preya U. Patel, Olga L. Rojas
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 30 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01300-7 A preprint by Parigi et al. reports that the homeostatic functions of skin-resident immune cells are shaped by distinct stem cell niches in hair follicles and interfollicular epidermis.
2026-03-30
Maria Armero, Felipe Galvez-Cancino
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 30 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01295-1 A preprint by Ma et al. reports that the Fc receptor CD16a is a mechanosensitive receptor that helps natural killer cells to discriminate between cell-bound antibodies and soluble immune complexes.
2026-03-25
Peter A. Tauber, Jürgen Ruland
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 25 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01283-5 Peripheral T cell lymphomas are aggressive cancers that frequently co-opt the signalling circuits that normally coordinate T cell activation at the immunological synapse. Here, the authors synthesize recent genomic and mechanistic evidence showing how gain-of-function lesions in TCR, co-stimulatory, and cytokine pathways, together with loss of checkpoint control such as PD1, drive malignancy.
2026-03-10
Lucy Bird
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 10 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01289-z Early life exposure to allergens triggers a unique mode of dendritic cell activation in the skin, inducing local inflammation and priming systemic allergic responses to subsequent exposures in later life.
2026-03-06
Krishneel Prasad, Ryan S. Cross, Misty R. Jenkins
Nature Reviews Immunology, Published online: 06 March 2026; doi:10.1038/s41577-026-01280-8 Cytokine-armoured CAR T cells represent a new generation of programmable cell therapies designed to enhance efficacy while limiting toxicity. This Review explores how cytokine armouring and advances in synthetic receptor design and conditional gene circuits are reshaping immunotherapy for solid tumours.