The research, led by Christina Zielinski of the Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology, uncovers the unique production pathway of IL-1α in T cells, which is distinct from its production in other cells. This cytokine, previously known to be part of the innate immune system, is now found to be produced by a multiprotein complex known as the inflammasome in T cells, a mechanism that was previously unknown in human T cells.
The release of IL-1α appears to be restricted to a subset of Th17 cells, which are known to play an important role in fungal infections. The team was able to show that mainly Th17 cells with antigen specificity for the infectious yeast Candida albicans secrete the cytokine, suggesting that this subset of Th17 cells is likely to be relevant for the defense against infections with the common yeast fungus.