Macdonald HR 2007 Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells as we know them today are a unique subset of mature T cells co-expressing a semi-invariant Valpha14/Vbeta8 TCR and surface markers characteristic of NK cells. The semi-invariant TCR on iNKT cells recognizes glycolipids bound to monomorphic CD1d molecules, leading to rapid cytokine production. The purpose of this historical perspective is to describe how a series of seemingly unrelated findings in the late 1980s and early 1990s crystallized in the discovery of iNKT cells. The story is told from a personal viewpoint, with a particular effort to place both breakthroughs and misinterpretations in the context of their era. application/pdf https://sonar.ch/global/documents/26993 eng info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1002/eji.200737527 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/pmid/17972354 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess European journal of immunology. - 2007 Allergy and Immunology Animals Cytotoxicity, Immunologic History, 20th Century Humans Killer Cells, Natural Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell T-Lymphocyte Subsets T-Lymphocytes NKT cells: In the beginning... http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501