The Emergence and Functional Fitness of Memory CD4+ T Cells Require the Transcription Factor Thpok (Immunity)

Memory CD4+ T cells contribute to long-term immunity against pathogens. Ciucci et al. show that the transcription factor Thpok is essential to safeguard the memory potential of early pathogen-responding CD4+ T cells and serves by antagonizing a Blimp1- and Runx3-driven dysfunction transcriptional circuitry.