COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) is an inflammatory disorder of the airways, which is associated with irreversible airway obstruction. The pathological hallmarks of COPD are destruction of the lung parenchyma (pulmonary emphysema), inflammation of the central airways (chronic bronchitis) and inflammation of the peripheral airways (respiratory bronchiolitis). Tobacco smoking is established as the main aetiological factor for COPD. A maladaptive modulation of inflammatory responses to inhalation of noxious particles and gases is generally accepted as being a key central pathogenic process; however, the precise regulatory mechanisms of the disease are poorly understood. Two cell types are known to be important in immune regulation, namely regulatory T-cells and the newly identified Th17 (T-helper 17) cells. Both types of cells are subsets of CD4 T-lymphocytes and modulate the immune response through secretion of cytokines, for example IL (interleukin)-10 and IL-17 respectively. The present review will begin by describing the current understanding of inflammatory cell involvement in the disease process, and then focus on the possible role of subsets of regulatory and helper T-cells in COPD.
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Review Article|
April 20 2010
Regulation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: the role of regulatory T-cells and Th17 cells
Nina Lane;
Nina Lane
*COPD Research Group, Department of Immunology, Nottingham Respiratory Biomedical Research Unit, The University of Nottingham NG7 2UH, U.K.
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R. Adrian Robins;
R. Adrian Robins
*COPD Research Group, Department of Immunology, Nottingham Respiratory Biomedical Research Unit, The University of Nottingham NG7 2UH, U.K.
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Jonathan Corne;
Jonathan Corne
†Department of Respiratory Medicine, Nottingham University Hospitals, Nottingham NG7 2UH, U.K.
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Lucy Fairclough
*COPD Research Group, Department of Immunology, Nottingham Respiratory Biomedical Research Unit, The University of Nottingham NG7 2UH, U.K.
Correspondence: Dr Lucy Fairclough (email [email protected]).
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
January 15 2010
Revision Received:
February 23 2010
Accepted:
March 05 2010
Online ISSN: 1470-8736
Print ISSN: 0143-5221
© The Authors Journal compilation © 2010 Biochemical Society
2010
Clin Sci (Lond) (2010) 119 (2): 75–86.
Article history
Received:
January 15 2010
Revision Received:
February 23 2010
Accepted:
March 05 2010
Citation
Nina Lane, R. Adrian Robins, Jonathan Corne, Lucy Fairclough; Regulation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease: the role of regulatory T-cells and Th17 cells. Clin Sci (Lond) 1 July 2010; 119 (2): 75–86. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/CS20100033
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