{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"institution":[{"name":"bioRxiv"}],"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,12]],"date-time":"2026-04-12T18:42:07Z","timestamp":1776019327574,"version":"3.50.1"},"posted":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,28]]},"group-title":"Immunology","reference-count":44,"publisher":"openRxiv","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,28]],"date-time":"2025-06-28T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1751068800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"NIH","award":["5T34GM136481"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["5T34GM136481"]}]},{"name":"NIH","award":["1T34GM150452"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["1T34GM150452"]}]},{"name":"NSF","award":["2150487"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["2150487"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":[],"accepted":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,28]]},"abstract":"<jats:title>Abstract<\/jats:title>\n                <jats:p>\n                  Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disorder affecting approximately 2% of the global population, characterized by immune-mediated disruption of hair follicle immune privilege and unpredictable hair loss. While CD4 and CD8 T cells are established drivers of pathogenesis, the roles of other immune cell populations remain incompletely defined. Here, we reaffirm the pathogenic role of CD8 T cells and identify a contribution of epidermal \u03b3\u03b4 T cells and macrophages to alopecia areata. Using publicly available single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNAseq) data from the skin of C3H\/HeJ mice with alopecia areata, we demonstrate that epidermal \u03b3\u03b4 T cells upregulate genes associated with immune homeostasis, proliferation, and inflammation, including\n                  <jats:italic>BST2<\/jats:italic>\n                  , an interferon-stimulated antiviral protein. In vivo, epidermal \u03b3\u03b4 T cells and keratinocytes are increased in number, with\n                  <jats:italic>BST2<\/jats:italic>\n                  expression enriched around hair follicles. BST2 is also expressed on CD8 T cells actively producing IFN-\u03b3 and on CD11b\n                  <jats:sup>+<\/jats:sup>\n                  macrophages with signatures of antiviral and complement system pathways. In human alopecia areata skin,\n                  <jats:italic>BST2<\/jats:italic>\n                  expression is elevated in alopecia areata and downregulated following treatment with the JAK inhibitor tofacitinib. Together, these findings position BST2 as a marker of interferon-driven immune activation and highlight epidermal \u03b3\u03b4 T cells as a contributor to alopecia areata pathogenesis.\n                <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1101\/2025.06.26.661822","type":"posted-content","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,6,29]],"date-time":"2025-06-29T02:50:12Z","timestamp":1751165412000},"source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Epidermal \u03b3\u03b4 T cells, CD8 T cells and macrophages are increased in number in alopecia areata and express BST2 as part of an interferon-driven antiviral gene signature"],"prefix":"10.64898","author":[{"given":"Jake","family":"Coast","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Alex","family":"Gonzalez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Cristina","family":"Velasquez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Milana","family":"Kansky","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Yosiris","family":"Valdovinos-Hagan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Matilde","family":"Macedo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Andrea","family":"Solano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Antolette","family":"Kasler","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0727-4066","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Julie M.","family":"Jameson","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, CA 92096"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"54368","reference":[{"issue":"4","key":"2026041210442408000_2025.06.26.661822v1.1","first-page":"e37406","article-title":"Viral-Induced Rapidly Progressive Alopecia Universalis: A Case Report and Literature Review","volume":"15","year":"2023","journal-title":"Cureus"},{"key":"2026041210442408000_2025.06.26.661822v1.2","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1111\/exd.14155"},{"key":"2026041210442408000_2025.06.26.661822v1.3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Boismenu R , Havran WL . 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