The nuocyte is a cell of the innate immune system that plays an important role in type 2 immune responses that are induced in response to helminth worm infection or in conditions such as asthma and atopic disease.
[2] Nuocytes contribute to the expulsion of helminth worms [1] and to the pathology of colitis[3] and allergic airways disease.
[7] The exact relationship between these cell types remains contentious [8][9] but all share a type-2-inducing phenotype.
MPP type 2 cells appear to differ from the other populations in that they have a myeloid, rather than lymphoid, origin.
[7] Nuocytes have been shown to have a lymphoid origin and a developmental pathway that is dependent upon the transcription factor RORα and Notch signalling.