Tuft cells-rare solitary chemosensory cells in mucosal epithelia-are undergoing intense scientific scrutiny fueled by recent discovery of unsuspected connections to type 2 immunity. These cells constitute a conduit by which ligands from the external space are sensed via taste-like signaling pathways to generate outputs unique among epithelial cells: the cytokine IL-25, eicosanoids associated with allergic immunity, and the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. The classic type II taste cell transcription factor POU2F3 is lineage defining, suggesting a conceptualization of these cells as widely distributed environmental sensors with effector functions interfacing type 2 immunity and neural circuits. Increasingly refined single-cell analytics have revealed diversity among tuft cells that extends from nasal epithelia and type II taste cells to ex-Aire-expressing medullary thymic cells and small-intestine cells that mediate tissue remodeling in response to colonizing helminths and protists.

中文翻译：

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簇状细胞 - 系统性分散的感觉上皮整合免疫和神经回路。

簇状细胞——粘膜上皮细胞中罕见的孤立化学感应细胞——正在接受严格的科学审查，这是由于最近发现与 2 型免疫的意外联系而推动的。这些细胞构成了一个管道，通过该管道，来自外部空间的配体通过类似味觉的信号通路被感知，以产生上皮细胞中独特的输出：细胞因子 IL-25、与过敏性免疫相关的类二十烷酸和神经递质乙酰胆碱。经典的 II 型味觉细胞转录因子 POU2F3 是谱系定义的，这表明将这些细胞概念化为广泛分布的环境传感器，具有连接 2 型免疫和神经回路的效应功能。