Natural Killer Cells

This revised second edition highlights the growing importance of natural killer (NK) cells as key contributors to immune defense and immune regulation. Their unique position between innate and adaptive immunity has made them central to current research, from understanding infection and inflammation to designing next-generation immunotherapies. Across six parts, the book integrates fundamental NK-cell biology with insights from disease settings and advanced experimental approaches. It shows how developmental pathways, receptor systems and repertoire diversity shape NK-cell function, and how these cells respond and adapt in the context of viral infection, chronic inflammation and cancer. This includes emerging evidence on their roles in SARS-CoV-2, fungal immunity and vascular and autoimmune disorders. The volume also reveals how NK-cell behavior differs across tissues such as the eye, lung, liver, uterus and skin, reflecting the influence of distinct microenvironments. Further chapters trace how cytokine signaling, immunometabolism and extracellular vesicles fine-tune NK-cell activity. A dedicated section on immunotherapy presents rapidly advancing strategies—from engineered NK-cell lines to CAR-NK and iPSC-derived approaches—while the final part introduces cutting-edge investigative methods, including organoid models, epigenetic analysis and AI-enabled concepts for therapy design. With its coherent structure and forward-looking scope, this reference work supports researchers and clinicians seeking to understand how NK cells are shaping modern immunology.