Super-Resolution Microscope Shows How Human T-Cells Make Life or Death Decisions

Using a super-resolution fluorescent microscope, researchers at the University of South Wales observed the distribution and activity of lymphocyte-specific protein tyrosine kinase I (Lck) in individual T-cells. Lck plays a key role in the signal cascade initiated by the T-cell receptor complex, which is responsible for recognizing antigens and initiating immune response. The highly advanced microscope allows researchers to track the activity of individual proteins and molecules within a cell. With this technology, researchers were able to visually determine the location of Lck within a cell and see it open and close as it phosphorylated other molecules in the signalling pathway. 

This advancement is very promising for its potential to reveal in greater detail the process by which T-cells initiate immune response. The proper functioning of the immune system is absolutely vital to human health, as many diseases result from its inability to target serious threats within the body or its tendency to wrongly attack a patient's own healthy tissue. This research could also prove invaluable for the development of immunotherapies as treatments for otherwise incurable diseases, such as Alzheimer's or cancer. It is especially interesting to me due to the fact that nearly every pathology in the world could be treated effectively by altering some function of the immune system. The ability to directly see the activity of proteins is also extremely interesting, and can be used to unlock countless untold secrets of the human body.