A new study has found out that a mysterious population of previously unknown cells lurks in the human body. Called “Immune Cell X”, this baffling cell type is a changeling that can act as two different cell types, and may also trigger type 1 diabetes.
Scientists have long believed that hybrid cells like these could not exist. The population of these cells is likely tiny; perhaps less than 7 out of every 10,000 white blood cells, said study co-author Abdel-Rahim A. Hamad, associate professor of pathology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore.
But they may play an outsize role in the development of autoimmunity.
"They are very rare, but we think they are very powerful," Hamad told Live Science.
More details about this enigmatic cell over at the site.
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Comments (1)
You don't have 20 spare minutes of your week to do this?
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