Tim-3 Proteins Shut Down Immune Attack

Researchers have found that the Tim-3 surface protein found on TH1-type helper T cells plays a key role in regulating immune response through modulation of helper cell activity in order to prevent tissue inflammation and development of autoimmune diseases.

Investigators at Harvard Medical School (Boston, MA, USA) used a line of mice with autoimmune diabetes, a condition known to be caused by a TH1 response against insulin-producing cells, to show that the Tim-3 pathway blockade accelerated diabetes in nonobese diabetic mice and prevented acquisition of transplantation tolerance induced by co-stimulation blockade. More...