{
  "abstract": "Adaptive immunity depends on the extraordinary longevity of the T-cell compartment, yet the mechanisms that sustain immune competence across decades remain incompletely understood. Traditional models emphasize homeostatic proliferation and cellular replacement as the basis of T-cell maintenance. Here, we propose an alternative framework in which long-term immune resilience depends primarily on preservation of stemness through cellular quiescence. Evidence from human aging studies indicates that naïve and stem-like memory T cells achieve exceptional longevity by limiting rather than maximizing turnover. Aging is therefore best understood as a progressive loss of stem-like cellular states, characterized by erosion of a TCF1-centered regulatory network that integrates FOXO1-dependent quiescence, BACH2-mediated restraint of differentiation, Wnt-dependent stemness reprogramming, and lysosomal-metabolic fitness. Exemplified by this model, intrinsic differences in the ability to maintain this network may account for the unequal aging of CD4 and CD8 T cells. Preserving T-cell stemness may represent a central goal of immune rejuvenation strategies.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [],
  "article_type": "Review",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "name": "Qiankun Yang"
    },
    {
      "name": "Annaka M. Saffron"
    },
    {
      "name": "Cornelia M. Weyand"
    },
    {
      "name": "Jörg J. Goronzy"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7hnr591kgdz8f.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3389/fimmu.2026.2010414",
  "fulltext_url": null,
  "id": "7hnr591kgdz8f",
  "issns": [
    "1664-3224"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2026.2010414",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "licence_label": "CC BY 4.0",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "feed-journal",
      "biology/immunology"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": null,
  "pdf_url": null,
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-11-09",
  "publisher": "Frontiers Media SA",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7hnr591kgdz8f.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-09T12:20:31Z",
      "native_id": "10.3389/fimmu.2026.2010414",
      "source": "feed-frontiers",
      "url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2026.2010414"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-09T12:22:59Z",
      "native_id": "10.3389/fimmu.2026.2010414",
      "source": "crossref",
      "url": "https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fimmu.2026.2010414/full"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "feed-journal:biology/immunology",
      "subfield": "immunology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "The TCF1-centered stemness network as the foundation of T cell longevity",
  "title_text": "The TCF1-centered stemness network as the foundation of T cell longevity",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-10T00:21:33Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/7hnr591kgdz8f",
  "venue": "Frontiers in Immunology",
  "versions": []
}