Blimp-1 connects the intrinsic and extrinsic regulation of T cell homeostasis.

The body tends to maintain a relatively constant number of peripheral T cells, a phenomenon termed T cell homeostasis. Homeostasis is controlled by the coordinated activity of extrinsic regulation, most notably through cytokines of the common gamma chain (cgammaC) family and intrinsic regulation by transcription factors. Whereas the former mechanism has been extensively studied and is relatively well characterized, the transcription factors that govern the homeostasis of late-stage effector and memory T cells have been less well defined but include regulators such as T-bet, Eomes, Bcl6, and Id2. The transcriptional repressor, Blimp-1 is well known as a master regulator of the terminal differentiation of B cells into antibody secreting plasma cells. Recent experiments have now revealed that Blimp-1 is also a key regulator of T cell differentiation. Blimp-1 is expressed in differentiated effector T cells and controls their homeostasis. Interestingly, Blimp-1 expression is controlled by the same cgammaC cytokines that regulate T cell homeostasis suggesting a direct link between the extrinsic and intrinsic arms of the process.