Immunity https://doi.org/10.1016/j.immuni.2018.07.004 (2018)

Macrophages adopt tissue-specific identities. In Immunity, Scott et al. report that the transcription factor Zeb2 controls the tissue identity of macrophages from the liver, lungs, brain, colon and spleen. Kupffer cells and alveolar macrophages with conditional deletion of Zeb2 gradually disappear from the tissue (by 20 days in the liver and >48 days in the lungs) and show differences in the expression of 60% and 72%, respectively, of their core tissue-specific genes. Spleen, brain and colon macrophages with conditional deletion of Zeb2 also show alterations in the expression of 60–75% of their core tissue-specific genes, with Zeb2-deficient spleen macrophages gradually disappearing from the tissue (microglia and colon macrophages were not assessed). Loss of Zeb2 results in mostly tissue-specific changes, with only 32 genes that are expressed differentially being shared by all tissues.