CD103+ dendritic cells producing interleukin-12 in anticancer immunosurveillance.

The mechanisms through which tumor antigen-specific T cells are elicited in natural or chemotherapy-induced immunosurveillance have been elusive. In this issue of Cancer Cell, two papers by Broz and colleagues and Ruffell and colleagues delineate an important role for a specific dendritic cell subset characterized by CD103 expression, dependence on transcription factors Batf3 and Irf8, and interleukin-12 production.