Mucosal T cells in gut homeostasis and inflammation

Abstract

The antigen-rich environment of the gut interacts with a highly integrated and specialized mucosal immune system that has the challenging task of preventing invasion and the systemic spread of microbes, while avoiding excessive or unnecessary immune responses to innocuous antigens. Disruption of the mucosal barrier and/or defects in gut immune regulatory networks may lead to chronic intestinal inflammation as seen in inflammatory bowel disease. The T-cell populations of the intestine play a critical role in controlling intestinal homeostasis, and their unique phenotypes and diversities reflect the sophisticated mechanisms that have evolved to maintain the delicate balance between immune activation and tolerance at mucosal sites. In this article, we will discuss the specialized properties of mucosal T cells in the context of immune homeostasis and inflammation.

Keywords::

• effector memory T cells
• inflammatory bowel disease
• intraepithelial lymphocytes
• lamina propria
• mucosal barrier
• regulatory T cells

Disclosure

The content of this article is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases or the National Institutes of Health.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

This work was supported by a Ter Meulen Fonds fellowship from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (Femke van Wijk) and by Grant RO1AI050265 from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (Hilde Cheroutre and Femke van Wijk). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.