Intuitive CD8+ T cells sense DNA

Cancer Stimulator of interferon genes (STING) agonism is an area of active exploration for cancer immunotherapy. Li et al. examined a DNA-sensing cascade called cGAS-STING in antitumor CD8+ T cells. They observed dampened STING activity in CD8+ T cells from patients with cancer or mice implanted with tumors. By contrast, STING signaling in transferred T cells supported a stem-like memory phenotype, which is known to be beneficial for responses to immunotherapy. Cytosolic DNA was enriched in activated T cells, and STING agonism improved the efficacy of adoptive cell therapy in multiple mouse models. These results highlight that CD8+ T cell DNA sensing could be exploited for therapeutic benefit in immunotherapy. Sci. Transl. Med. 12 , eaay9013 (2020).