Li Zhang (Toronto, Canada) showed that ex vivo expanded human γδ T cells are effective against pre-established autologous primary lung cancer in NOD/SCID mice, with both NKG2D and TRAIL being involved in γδ T-cell-mediated anti-tumour activity. Larry Lamb (Birmingham, AL, USA) highlighted that while human γδ T cells can clearly expand and be functional in mouse glioblastoma models they are typically depleted and dysfunctional Barasertib in human glioblastoma patients, raising key issues about autologous adoptive transfer therapies.

In this context, Richard Lopez (Birmingham, AL, USA) suggested a new therapeutic scheme consisting of lymphodepleting doses of cyclophosphamide to create a “window of opportunity” for administration of allogeneic γδ T cells obtained from healthy donors. Although at present only demonstrated in mouse models, such an approach would allow the generation of large numbers of non-exhausted γδ T cells for “off the shelf” treatment of cancer patients. The fifth γδ T-cell conference provided a comprehensive review of what is being done around the world to clarify the enigmatic role of this lymphocyte lineage in the immune response. Significant advances have been made in understanding the development and activation (particularly SAHA HDAC purchase antigen recognition) of murine and human γδ T cells. Furthermore,

exciting efforts are being pursued to apply this knowledge in immunotherapy of infection and cancer, and initial steps are being taken in the context of autoimmune diseases. The next γδ T-cell conference is scheduled for 2014 in Chicago, IL (USA). We thank all researchers cited above for

their input and Natacha Gonçalves-Sousa for help with the manuscript. This conference was generously sponsored Carbachol by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) — grants FI 458/5-1 (to P.F.), EXC294 (BIOSS Center for Biological Signalling Studies) and SFB620 B6 (to W.W.A.S); EU through grant FP7/2007–2013 SYBILLA; the Department of Pathology at the University of Freiburg, the Centre for Chronic Immunodeficiency, the local Collaborative Research Centre (CRC 620), and various commercial sponsors. “
“Different rates of bacterial translocation across the gut mucosa have been reported but few studies have examined translocation of commensals at the level of the gut epithelial microfold (M) cell. We used an in vitro M-cell model to quantify translocation and determine the transcriptional response of M cells to various commensal bacteria. The transport kinetics and gene expression profile of M cells in response to different bacterial strains, namely Lactobacillus salivarius, Escherichia coli and Bacteroides fragilis, was assessed. Bacterial strains translocated across M cells with different efficiencies; E. coli and B. fragilis translocated with equal efficiency whereas L. salivarius translocated with less efficiency.