Trained immunity: A new weapon in the fight against infectious diseases

Innate immune cells can potentiate the response to reinfection through an innate form of immunological memory known as trained immunity. The potential of this fast-acting, nonspecific memory compared to traditional adaptive immunological memory in prophylaxis and therapy has been a topic of great interest in many fields, including infectious diseases. Amidst the rise of antimicrobial resistance and climate change-two major threats to global health-, harnessing the advantages of trained immunity compared to traditional forms of prophylaxis and therapy could be game-changing. Here, we present recent works bridging trained immunity and infectious disease that raise important discoveries, questions, concerns, and novel avenues for the modulation of trained immunity in practice. By exploring the progress in bacterial, viral, fungal, and parasitic diseases, we equally highlight future directions with a focus on particularly problematic and/or understudied pathogens.

Automated summary

Innate immune cells can enhance the response to reinfection through trained immunity, a form of immunological memory. The potential of trained immunity in prophylaxis and therapy has attracted great interest in the field of infectious diseases. In the context of antimicrobial resistance and climate change, harnessing the advantages of trained immunity could be game-changing. This article presents recent research linking trained immunity and infectious diseases, highlighting important discoveries, questions, concerns, and novel avenues for its modulation in practice, with a focus on problematic and understudied pathogens.