专题：Nature报道
自然杀手（NK）细胞是先天免疫细胞，通过产生Th1-型细胞因子对病毒和细菌感染做出反应。Moro等人报告，他们在肠系膜淋巴结中发现了产生TH2、作为B1细胞的帮手发挥作用的先天淋巴细胞的一个以前未被识别出的亚类。这些自然帮手细胞也许在通过杯状细胞激发粘液的产生来防范寄生虫中扮演一个角色。
原始出处：
Nature 463, 540-544 (28 January 2010) | doi:10.1038/nature08636
Innate production of TH2 cytokines by adipose tissue-associated c-Kit+Sca-1+ lymphoid cells
Kazuyo Moro1,4, Taketo Yamada2, Masanobu Tanabe3, Tsutomu Takeuchi3, Tomokatsu Ikawa5, Hiroshi Kawamoto5, Jun-ichi Furusawa1, Masashi Ohtani1,6, Hideki Fujii1 " Shigeo Koyasu1,7
1 Department of Microbiology and Immunology,
2 Department of Pathology,
3 Department of Tropical Medicine and Parasitology, Keio University School of Medicine, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan
4 Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST), CREST, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-0075, Japan
5 Laboratory for Lymphocyte Development, Riken Research Center for Allergy and Immunology, Yokohama, Kanagawa 230-0045, Japan
6 Department of Cell Signalling, Institute of Biomedical Science, Kansai Medical University, Moriguchi, Osaka 570-8506, Japan
7 Research Center for Science Systems, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-8472, Japan
8 Correspondence to: Shigeo Koyasu1,7 Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to S.K.
Innate immune responses are important in combating various microbes during the early phases of infection. Natural killer (NK) cells are innate lymphocytes that, unlike T and B lymphocytes, do not express antigen receptors but rapidly exhibit cytotoxic activities against virus-infected cells and produce various cytokines1, 2. Here we report a new type of innate lymphocyte present in a novel lymphoid structure associated with adipose tissues in the peritoneal cavity. These cells do not express lineage (Lin) markers but do express c-Kit, Sca-1 (also known as Ly6a), IL7R and IL33R. Similar lymphoid clusters were found in both human and mouse mesentery and we term this tissue ‘FALC’ (fat-associated lymphoid cluster). FALC Lin-c-Kit+Sca-1+ cells are distinct from lymphoid progenitors3 and lymphoid tissue inducer cells4. These cells proliferate in response to IL2 and produce large amounts of TH2 cytokines such as IL5, IL6 and IL13. IL5 and IL6 regulate B-cell antibody production and self-renewal of B1 cells5, 6, 7. Indeed, FALC Lin-c-Kit+Sca-1+ cells support the self-renewal of B1 cells and enhance IgA production. IL5 and IL13 mediate allergic inflammation and protection against helminth infection8, 9. After helminth infection and in response to IL33, FALC Lin-c-Kit+Sca-1+ cells produce large amounts of IL13, which leads to goblet cell hyperplasia―a critical step for helminth expulsion. In mice devoid of FALC Lin-c-Kit+Sca-1+ cells, such goblet cell hyperplasia was not induced. Thus, FALC Lin-c-Kit+Sca-1+ cells are TH2-type innate lymphocytes, and we propose that these cells be called ‘natural helper cells’.
