Autophagy maintains high endothelial venule identity and function during inflammation.

Autophagy is essential for maintaining high endothelial venule identity and function during inflammation, with deficiency reducing lymphocyte homing by 50%.

• Why it matters: Understanding how HEVs sustain their role during inflammation is critical for improving immune responses and treating inflammatory diseases like psoriasis, where immune infiltration is key.
• What they did: The study used single-cell transcriptomics, proteomics, intravital imaging, and an inducible HEV tracer system in mice to investigate autophagy's role in HEV maintenance and expansion.
• The result: Autophagy deficiency disrupts PNAd production and HEV differentiation, impairing lymphocyte homing and reducing skin inflammation, highlighting autophagy as a safeguard of immune infiltration during inflammation.