How CD8+ T cells integrate environmental cues
Chemokines direct CD8+ T cell migration during adaptive immune responses by remodeling the actomyosin cytoskeleton through small GTPase activation.
Mechanosignaling—the ability to sense and respond to environmental physical forces—is increasingly recognized as a central regulator of immune function.
Under physical confinement, CD8+ T cells form perinuclear F-actin patches that facilitate nuclear passage through narrow pores.
Tissue-resident memory CD8+ T cells in exocrine glands use nuclear deformation to sense confinement, and this process triggers actomyosin contractility-driven motility that can bypass chemokine signals.
CD8+ T cell subsets integrate physical and biochemical cues to form sustained Rac- versus Rho-driven signaling, analogous to front- versus rear-driven locomotion of vehicles.
https://www.cell.com/trends/immunology/fulltext/S1471-4906(26)00035-9
