A decade of imaging cellular motility and interaction dynamics in the immune system

Science. 2012 Jun 29;336(6089):1676-81. doi: 10.1126/science.1221063.

Abstract

To mount an immune response, lymphocytes must recirculate between the blood and lymph nodes, recognize antigens upon contact with specialized presenting cells, proliferate to expand a small number of clonally relevant lymphocytes, differentiate to antibody-producing plasma cells or effector T cells, exit from lymph nodes, migrate to tissues, and engage in host-protective activities. All of these processes involve motility and cellular interactions--events that were hidden from view until recently. Introduced to immunology by three papers in this journal in 2002, in vivo live-cell imaging studies are revealing the behavior of cells mediating adaptive and innate immunity in diverse tissue environments, providing quantitative measurement of cellular motility, interactions, and response dynamics. Here, we review themes emerging from such studies and speculate on the future of immunoimaging.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adaptive Immunity
  • Animals
  • Cell Communication
  • Cell Movement*
  • Forecasting
  • Host-Parasite Interactions
  • Humans
  • Immune System / cytology
  • Immune System / physiology*
  • Immunity, Humoral
  • Immunosuppression Therapy
  • Microscopy, Fluorescence, Multiphoton / methods*
  • T-Lymphocytes / immunology