Human immune cells are capable of coordinating their own movement more independently than previously thought. InFLAMES researcher Jonna Alanko has discovered that immune cells do not just passively follow the chemical cues in their environment. Quite the contrary, they can also shape these cues and navigate in complex environments in a self-organized manner.
Directional cell movement is an essential and fundamental phenomenon of life. It is an important prerequisite for individual development, reformation of blood vessels, and immune response, among others.
A study conducted by Postdoctoral Researcher Jonna Alanko focused on the movement and navigation of immune cells within the body. Chemokines, a class of signaling proteins, play a crucial role in guiding immune cells to specific locations. Chemokines are formed, for instance, in the lymph nodes and create chemical cues called chemokine gradients for cells to follow within the body. According to Alanko, these chemokine gradients are like a trail of scent left in the air, it gets lighter the further you are from its source.
The traditional idea has been that immune cells recognize their target by following existing chemokine gradients. In other words, the cells following these cues have been seen as passive actors, which is not the case in reality.
We were able to prove for the first time that contrary to the previous conception, immune cells do not need