Immune-parenchymal ligand-receptor axes: Microenvironmental control of tissue cell phenotypes in tumor and non-tumor diseases, volume II

Across organs and disease contexts, immune cells shape the behavior of tissue parenchymal cells through short-range and long-range cues. A central layer of this communication is mediated by immune-parenchymal ligand-receptor (LR) interactions that integrate inflammatory signals, metabolic stress, extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling, and damage responses into distinct parenchymal cell phenotypes. Recent advances in single-cell and spatial multi-omics, imaging, and systems immunology now allow immune-parenchymal LR signaling to be mapped with unprecedented resolution in both malignant and non-malignant settings. However, discoveries are often siloed by organ or disease type (e.g., cancer, fibrosis, autoimmunity), and the broader principles of immune-parenchymal LR circuits as shared “axes” of microenvironmental control remain underexplored. This Research Topic aims to bring together work that dissects how immune–parenchymal LR signaling governs tissue states across tumors and non-tumor diseases.The goal of this Research Topic is to define and compare immune-parenchymal LR axes that control tissue cell phenotypes in diverse pathological contexts, and to translate these insights into biomarkers and therapeutic strategies. We seek to highlight how specific immune-parenchymal LR pairs and signaling modules (e.g., TNF/TNFR, TGF-β/TGFBR, integrin-ECM, chemokine-chemokine receptor, co-stimulatory and co-inhibitory axes) link immune activation, resolution, or dysregulation to parenchymal outcomes such as epithelial–mesenchymal transition, fibrosis, angiogenesis, neurodegeneration, metabolic reprogramming, or cell death.We particularly welcome studies on recent advances in single-cell and spatial technologies, quantitative imaging, proteomics/post-translational modifications, and computational modeling (e.g., immune-parenchymal LR inference, causal or network-based approaches, AI/ML) to resolve immune-parenchymal communication in situ. By juxtaposing tumors with non-malignant inflammatory, fibrotic, cardiovascular, neurological, infectious, and autoimmune diseases, this Topic aims to uncover convergent and divergent immune-parenchymal LR axes, clarify their mechanistic underpinnings, and identify points of intervention at the level of ligands, receptors, downstream pathways, or cellular states.This Research Topic welcomes submissions that explore immune-parenchymal LR signaling and its impact on tissue phenotypes in tumor and non-tumor diseases. We are interested in Original Research, Methods, Brief Research Reports, Reviews/Mini-Reviews, Perspectives, and Technology or Data Reports that clearly address how immune–parenchymal LR interactions shape disease-relevant tissue cell states. Areas of interest include, but are not limited to:• Mapping immune-parenchymal LR networks between immune cells and parenchymal cells using single-cell, spatial, or high-dimensional cytometry approaches.• Dissecting immune-parenchymal LR-controlled pathways driving inflammation, fibrosis, angiogenesis, tissue remodeling, degeneration, or regeneration.• Comparative studies of immune-parenchymal LR axes across organs or between malignant and non-malignant conditions. Systems and computational immunology approaches to infer, model, or perturb immune-parenchymal LR circuits.• Translational work identifying immune-parenchymal LR-based biomarkers, prognostic signatures, or therapeutic targets.This Research Topic is the second volume in the series in "Immune-parenchymal ligand-receptor axes: Microenvironmental control of tissue cell phenotypes in tumor and non-tumor diseases". Please see the details of the first volume here.Please note that manuscripts unrelated to immune mechanisms or consisting solely of bioinformatics or computational analysis of public genomic or transcriptomic databases which are not accompanied by robust and relevant validation, for instance in an independent patient population or by PCR, are considered out of scope. Topic editors: Guohu Di, Santosh Chokkakula, Balaji Pathakumari Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/85415/immune-parenchymal-ligand-receptor-axes-microenvironmental-control-of-tissue-cell-phenotypes-in-tumor-and-non-tumor-diseases-volume-ii