[8] Results obtained www.selleckchem.com/screening/kinase-inhibitor-library.html from studies of experimental animal models of autoimmune disease and inflammation provide the basis of a hypothesis that addresses three main properties of

NKT cells during such responses (Table 1). First, type I NKT cells can be either pathogenic or protective. Second, type I NKT cells have a greater propensity to be more pathogenic than protective. Third, type II NKT cells function predominantly to protect from inflammation and autoimmune disease. A test of this hypothesis requires that the factors and mechanisms that give rise to these outcomes in vivo are determined. It is anticipated that the identification of the molecular and cellular factors that drive these mechanisms will facilitate the development of novel immunotherapeutic protocols to prevent and treat inflammation and autoimmune disease. Hence, the objectives of this review are: (i) to provide

novel insight into how type I and type II NKT cells may cross-talk with other immune cells to regulate immune responses, and (ii) to determine how such analyses may enhance the success of future clinical trials of type I and type II NKT cell antagonists in inflammation and autoimmune disease. First, find more we highlight recent clinical and experimental advances in our understanding of the lipid antigens, inflammatory milieu, innate-like mechanisms and cellular interactions that regulate the activation and interactions of NKT cell subsets. Next, we discuss the rationale for why the application of several novel techniques to analyses Tryptophan synthase of NKT cell movement and function in vivo may provide more insight into the design of improved clinical trials of autoimmune disease. The NKT cells express T-cell antigen receptors (TCR) characteristic

of conventional T cells and several cell surface proteins characteristic of NK cells, such as CD56/161(humans) and NK1.1 (mice).[2, 3, 5] NKT cells are generally reactive to lipid antigens presented by CD1d MHC class I like molecules.[2-15] Depending on the target tissue, different types of APCs including dendritic cells (DCs), macrophages (Mϕ), B cells, thymocytes, adipocytes and hepatocytes, can express CD1d molecules and activate NKT cells. In this review, we focus on analyses of CD1d-mediated responses of the type I and type II NKT cell subsets. Notwithstanding, it should be kept in mind that additional MHC class I like molecules such as CD1a, CD1b, CD1c and CD1e, as well as MR1, are expressed on APCs and can activate various subsets of T cells. The latter types of CD1-restricted T-cell subsets are not discussed here. The developmental mechanisms involved in the commitment and maturation of NKT cells employ transcription factors and genes distinct from and shared by both MHC-restricted T cells and NK cell lineages.