About this Research Topic
Intervention of the immune-stromal interaction has novel therapeutic potential in inflammatory diseases of the skin, gut, joints and lung. However, the heterogeneity of these cell types (such as fibroblast subpopulations), phenotypic changes during disease progression, and lack of clearly defined disease-specific markers pose significant challenges in developing safe and effective therapeutics. In-depth phenotypic profiling and functional studies using translational experimental platforms will greatly enable the discovery of novel efficacy enhancing therapeutics.
This research topic aims to expand our knowledge into the mechanisms, kinetics, and pathways of immune regulation by stromal cells and neurons. Filling this gap in knowledge has the potential to help discover novel therapeutic opportunities. Mechanisms of interest include (but are not limited to): priming and amplification of immune activation and disease chronicity, niche function for disease-driving immune cells, and tissue remodelling during chronic inflammation.
In addition, this Research Topic aims to report emerging technologies that enable mapping of the immune-nonimmune interactions as well as translational in vitro/in vivo tools and functional experimental platforms modelling these interactions. Contributions in the form of Original Research articles and Review articles covering the following topics, with particular emphasis on human-centric translational data, will be welcomed:
1. Fibroblast and immune crosstalk
2. Neuro-immune interactions
3. Tissue resident immune cells
4. Tertiary lymphoid structures
5. Epithelial-immune interactions
6. Complex in vitro systems modelling immune - stromal interactions/crosstalk
7. Novel in vivo models to study immune - stromal interactions
Note that Matthew Staron, Stacy Ryu and Stephen Gauld are AbbVie employees.
Keywords: Tissue resident immune cells, Fibroblast and immune crosstalk, Neuroimmune interactions Tertiary lymphoid structures, Cell-cell interactions
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.