OTULIN Maintains Skin Homeostasis by Controlling Keratinocyte Death and Stem Cell Identity

The study investigated the role of innate lymphoid cells-type 1 (ILC1) in alopecia areata (AA) and found that these cells were significantly increased around hair follicles (HFs) in AA patients. Experiments showed that ILC1-like cells (ILC1lc) could induce AA characteristics, such as premature HF regression and immune privilege collapse, in both ex vivo and in vivo models. Blocking NKG2D or neutralizing IFNg counteracted these effects. The findings suggested that ILC1lc alone could trigger AA, challenging the belief that AA is solely a CD8+ T cell-driven autoimmune disease.