Myeloid cells in health and liver disease

Cells of the myeloid lineage display diverse roles and functions both in tissue homeostatic conditions and during the development of liver diseases. Hepatic myeloid cells such asKupffer cells exert immune surveillance while maintaining immune tolerance. This helps to prevent excessive immune stimulation upon encounter with gut-derived antigens from food and commensal microbes, or rapidly identifying and eliminating pathogens. Myeloid cells also exhibit a dual role by contributing to both the initiation and progression of liver diseases. During liver inflammation, myeloid cells secrete cytokines and chemokines that promote chemotaxis and tissue damage. Further down the process they can undergo reprogramming into pro-resolving, anti-inflammatory cells. In extremis, these can lead to loss of liver function and development of fibrosis and cirrhosis. Liver myeloid cells can also dictate the progress of hepatic malignancy by either promoting the infiltration and activation or suppressing the activities of effector and/or cytotoxic T cells.

This Research Topic aims to provide an insight into the recent advances in the field of myeloid cell biology in acute and chronic liver injury, to increase our understanding of their various roles and functions, as well as the identification of new immunotherapeutic targets and interventions. Liver immunology areas of interest may include, but are not limited to, the following conditions:

• Drug-induced liver injury (e.g., acetaminophen overdose)
• Alcohol-associated liver disease (e.g., alcoholic hepatitis, alcoholic steatohepatitis)
• Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis
• Cirrhosis and acute-on-chronic liver failure
• Liver cancer (e.g., hepatocellular carcinoma, cholangiocarcinoma)
• Liver disorders due to viral, bacterial, or parasitic infections

We welcome the submission of Original Research, Reviews, Mini Reviews, and Perspective articles that cover, but are not limited to, the following sub-topics:
• Molecular and functional differences of liver-resident and liver-recruited myeloid cell subsets
• Myeloid cell crosstalk with other liver parenchymal and non-parenchymal cells
• Transcriptional and epigenetic control of myeloid cell fate and function
• Insights from new technologies e.g., metabolomics, spatial transcriptomics, single-cell RNAseq
• Therapeutic targeting of myeloid cells for liver disease treatment

Topic editor Jack Leslie is a shareholder at FibroFind Ltd. All other Topic Editors declare no competing interests with regard to the Research Topic subject.