Crosstalk between immunology and hepatology

The liver sits at a unique crossroads between metabolism, the gut microbiome, and systemic immunity. It constantly encounters food- and microbiota-derived antigens through the portal circulation, so it relies on tightly regulated immune tolerance alongside rapid innate and adaptive responses to infection and tissue damage. When this balance is disrupted, immune activation can become a driver of hepatocyte injury, cholestasis, fibrosis, and cancer development. Immune dysfunction is increasingly recognized across a wide spectrum of liver conditions, including pediatric acute liver failure with unclear triggers, monogenic disorders and inborn errors of immunity with hepatic involvement, autoimmune liver disease, viral hepatitis, and metabolic dysfunction–associated steatohepatitis (MASH). Tumor–immune interactions in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) shape immune surveillance and escape, while post-transplant alloimmunity and biliary disease highlight additional layers of immune–hepatic crosstalk within the liver microenvironment.This Research Topic aims to define how specific immune pathways and antigen-driven responses contribute to liver injury, persistence, and progression, and how these insights can translate into better diagnostics and therapies. In IND-PALF, expanded CD8 T cell infiltrates and increased T cell clonality suggest antigen-driven immune activation; a key priority is to identify candidate antigens and characterize the immune programs sustaining inflammation. In parallel, advances in immunogenetics and multi-omics are accelerating discovery in IEI with hepatic phenotypes, enabling more precise, mechanism-based classification and targeted care. In autoimmune hepatitis, proteomics is increasingly used to predict treatment response and relapse risk, with the potential to tailor monitoring and therapy. In HCC, improved understanding of immune surveillance and immune escape can guide rational immunotherapy design and combination strategies. Finally, growing recognition of immune contributions to MASH highlights the need to connect metabolic stress signals with immune activation and fibrosis. Together, these advances create opportunities to develop alternatives for patients with incomplete or non-response to conventional treatment.We are interested in reviewing manuscripts that pertain but are not limited to the following topics:• Regulatory T cells in autoimmune liver disease• Alloimmunity in liver transplantation (not T cell Mediated Rejection) / Dendritic cells in liver transplantation• CD8 T cell acute hepatitis / T cell clonality in acute liver failure• Type II interferon signaling in Wolcott-Rallison Syndrome• Proteomics in autoimmune hepatitis• Immune surveillance in Hepatocellular carcinoma• Immune interaction in MASH Topic editors: Udeme D Ekong, David N. Assis Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/77967/crosstalk-between-immunology-and-hepatology