Involvement of ILC1-Like Innate Lymphocytes in Human Autoimmunity: Lessons from Alopecia Areata

The study investigated the role of ILC1-like innate lymphocytes (ILC1lc) in the pathogenesis of alopecia areata (AA), revealing that these cells were significantly increased around hair follicles in AA patients and could induce AA hallmarks such as hair follicle regression and immune privilege collapse. The research challenged the traditional view that AA is solely driven by CD8+ T cells, highlighting the involvement of innate immune cells. ILC1lc were shown to induce hair follicle damage through IFN-γ secretion, accelerating the transition from anagen to catagen phase, and causing hair loss in humanized mouse models. The study involved 20 healthy donors for ex vivo experiments and 5 donors for in vivo experiments, suggesting that targeting ILC1lc could be a potential therapeutic approach for AA.