密西根大學(xué)的科學(xué)家在一篇發(fā)表于Nature Chemical Biology雜志的研究報(bào)告中稱,，他們發(fā)現(xiàn)一種從根本上可以抑制攻擊性免疫細(xì)胞攻擊機(jī)體自身細(xì)胞的新機(jī)制,。這項(xiàng)發(fā)現(xiàn)或許對(duì)自身免疫性疾病、器官移植或癌癥的治療提供新的治療方向,。
研究人員發(fā)現(xiàn),，免疫系統(tǒng)中的調(diào)節(jié)性T細(xì)胞(regulatory T cells)能夠通過(guò)改變細(xì)胞間的化學(xué)環(huán)境，以抑制或促進(jìn)增殖的方式來(lái)影響自身反應(yīng)性T細(xì)胞,，與該機(jī)制相關(guān)的疾病包括炎癥性腸病(inflammatory bowel disease IBD),，潰瘍性結(jié)腸炎(ulcerative colitis)等。
研究人員利用實(shí)驗(yàn)室培養(yǎng)的小鼠免疫細(xì)胞進(jìn)行研究,，發(fā)現(xiàn)當(dāng)免疫細(xì)胞初次接觸到外源物質(zhì)時(shí),，樹(shù)突狀細(xì)胞(dendritic cells)和自身反應(yīng)性T細(xì)胞之間會(huì)產(chǎn)生化學(xué)信息交流。樹(shù)突狀細(xì)胞改變了細(xì)胞外部的化學(xué)環(huán)境,，從而激活自身反應(yīng)性T細(xì)胞,。但調(diào)節(jié)性T細(xì)胞則會(huì)干預(yù)這種化學(xué)信息交流并抑制上述反應(yīng)。
研究人員Banerjee認(rèn)為研究調(diào)節(jié)行T細(xì)胞在細(xì)胞中的作用,，或許能夠提高治療某些疾病成功的機(jī)率,。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推薦原始出處：
Nature Chemical Biology 30 August 2009 | doi:10.1038/nchembio.212
Extracellular redox modulation by regulatory T cells
Zhonghua Yan1, Sanjay K Garg1, Jonathan Kipnis2 & Ruma Banerjee1
We demonstrate that the mechanism of redox remodeling during mouse T-cell activation involves secretion of glutathione by dendritic cells and its subsequent cleavage to cysteine. Extracellular cysteine accumulation results in a lower redox potential, which is conducive to proliferation, and changes the net redox status of exofacial protein domains. Regulatory T cells inhibit this redox metabolite signaling pathway, which represents a previously unrecognized mechanism for immunosuppression of effector T cells.
1 Department of Biological Chemistry, University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
2 Department of Neuroscience, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia, USA.
