Cambridge study shows regulatory T cells can reduce risk of organ transplant, promote hair regrowth: All about the 'Healer Army'

A new study by scientists at the University of Cambridge has revealed promising information about regulatory T cells, a type of white blood cell that fights autoimmune and inflammatory diseases in the body.

It was previously believed that regulatory T cells existed as multiple specialist populations working in limited parts of the body. However, the Cambridge study published on June 18 debunks this notion, revealing that regulatory T cells exist as a single population of cells that travel throughout the body to repair damaged tissue.

The Cambridge scientists arrived at this conclusion after observing and analysing regulatory T cells in 48 different tissues in the mice's bodies. This experiment proved that the cells are not restricted or stationary to a particular area, but move throughout the body.

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“It's hard to think of a disease, injury or infection that doesn't involve some sort of immune response, and our discovery has really transformed the way we control this response,” said Professor Adrian Liston, senior author of the paper.

Liston called regulatory T cells an “integrated healing army” and said they have the potential to be used to treat a number of diseases in the future.

Using a self-made drug, the researchers have demonstrated that regulatory T cells can now be directed to a specific part of the body, increased in number, and eventually activated to block the body's immune response and promote healing in just one area. This allows the body to treat itself in a localized way, while the rest of the immune system continues to function normally.

Thus this discovery could prove useful in developing drugs that target specific areas or organs of the body. This would be particularly useful in enhancing anti-inflammatory drugs, which currently affect the whole body rather than just the pain areas.

Regulatory T cells also promote hair regrowth by interacting with hair tissue stem cells and facilitating their regeneration. They may thus help treat diseases such as alopecia, an autoimmune disorder in which hair follicles are destroyed, resulting in hair loss. The new discovery may help improve such existing mechanisms performed by regulatory T cells.

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Another example is organ transplantation. People who receive organ transplants take immunosuppressant drugs for the rest of their lives to prevent their bodies from mounting a strong immune response to the transplanted organ. This increases their risk of infection.

However, the new findings could help create drugs that block the body's immune response to the new organ only, reducing a person's susceptibility to other diseases.