2009-004 Th淋巴细胞－副本.pdfVIP

Hindawi Publishing Corporation Clinical and Developmental Immunology Volume 2007, Article ID 89195, 11 pages doi:10.1155/2007/89195 Review Article Regulatory T Cells and Human Disease Nathalie Cools,1 Peter Ponsaerts,1, 2 Viggo F. I. Van Tendeloo,1, 2 and Zwi N. Berneman1, 2 1 Vaccine and Infectiouse Disease Institute (VIDI), Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium 2 Center for Cellular Therapy and Regenerative Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital, 2650 Antwerp, Belgium Correspondence should be addressed to Nathalie Cools, nathalie.cools@uza.be Received 16 July 2007; Accepted 8 November 2007 Recommended by Yang Liu The main function of our immune system is to protect us from invading pathogens and microorganisms by destroying infected cells, while minimizing collateral damage to tissues. In order to maintain this balance between immunity and tolerance, current understanding of the immune system attributes a major role to regulatory T cells (Tregs) in controlling both immunity and toler- ance. Various subsets of Tregs have been identified based on their expression of cell surface markers, production of cytokines, and mechanisms of action. In brief, naturally occurring thymic-derived CD4+ CD25+ Tregs are characterized by constitutive expres- sion of the transcription factor FOXP3, while antigen-induced or adaptive Tregs are mainly identified by expression of immuno- suppressive cytokines (interleukin-10 (IL-10) and/or transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β )). While Tregs in normal conditions regulate ongoing immune responses and prevent autoimmunity, imbalanced function or number of these Tregs, either enhanced or decreased, might lead, respectively, to decreased immunity (e.g., with tumor development or infections) or aut