576-C 29 OCTOBER 2021 • VOL 374 ISSUE 6567 science.org SCIENCERESEARCH | IN SCIENCE JOURNALSet al. developed mice with a
conditional deletion of the IL-12
receptor beta 2-subunit gene
(Il12rb2). Although Il12rb2 was
highly expressed in skin gd T cells
and a subset of interfollicular
keratinocytes, mice with Il12rb2
deleted in keratinocytes but not
hematopoietic cells developed
more severe skin inflammation
in a model of psoriasis. IL-12
signaling restrained keratinocyte
proliferation and counteracted
IL-23/IL-17 cytokine signaling,
highlighting the noninflamma-
tory, regulatory function of IL-12
in skin pathologies dependent on
type 3 immunity. —CO
Sci. Immunol. 6 , eabg9012 (2021).
TRANSPLANT MEDICINE
Inducing immune
suppression
Type 1 regulatory T cells (Tr1
cells) are a population of
inducible T cells that suppress
graft-versus-host disease after
allogeneic stem cell trans-
plantation. To determine the
mechanisms of suppression
by Tr1 cells, Chen et al. com-
pared Tr1 cells from a human
Tr1-enriched cell product called
T-allo10 with non-Tr1 cells from
the same product. The authors
found that Tr1 cells had a dis-
tinct T cell receptor repertoire
and transcriptional program.
Additionally, Tr1 cells suppressed
through both interleukin-10
production and expression of
two key coinhibitory proteins,
CTLA-4 and PD-1. Finally, the
authors showed in patients
receiving T-allo10 that Tr1 cells
persist up to 1 year after transfer.
These findings further charac-
terize the function of Tr1 cells
and demonstrate their clinical
relevance for graft-versus-host
disease. —CSM
Sci. Transl. Med. 13 , eabf5264 (2021).
ARCHAEOLOGY
Identifying Tatanka
Iyotake’s descendents
The genetic analysis of the
genealogies of historical figures
is difficult because of the com-
plexities of parental inheritance,
restricted or limited access to
samples, and the fact that the
already limited amounts of DNA
in such samples are often highly
degraded. At the request of a
presumed descendant of the
famous Lakota leader Tatanka
Iyotake (Sitting Bull), Moltke
et al. developed a powerful
new method for the analysis of
DNA in these kinds of circum-
stances. Using a small piece of
Sitting Bull’s hair that had been
repatriated to his presumed
descendants in 2007, the team
definitively identified one of
them as Sitting Bull’s great-
grandson. The method shows
promise for the analysis of sam-
ples with very small amounts of
endogenous DNA. —MSA
S c i. Ad v. 10.1126/sciadv.abh2013
(2021).