AUTHOR=Hillhouse Erin E., Delisle Jean-Sébastien , Lesage Sylvie 

TITLE=Immunoregulatory CD4-CD8- T cells as a potential therapeutic tool for transplantation, autoimmunity, and cancer

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Immunology

VOLUME=4

YEAR=2013

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/immunology/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2013.00006

DOI=10.3389/fimmu.2013.00006

ISSN=1664-3224

ABSTRACT=<p>A central objective in organ transplantation and the treatment or prevention of autoimmune disease is the achievement of antigen-specific immune tolerance. An additional challenge in bone marrow transplantation for the treatment of hematological malignancies is the prevention of graft-vs-host disease (GVHD) while maintaining graft-vs-tumor activity. Interestingly, CD4<sup>-</sup>CD8<sup>-</sup> (double negative, DN) T cells, which exhibit a unique antigen-specific immunoregulatory potential, appear to exhibit all of the properties to respond to these challenges. Herein, we review the therapeutic potential of immunoregulatory DN T cells in various immunopathological settings, including graft tolerance, GVHD, cancer, and autoimmunity.</p>