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Abstract
The transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) protein family is highly evolutionarily conserved and they have been implicated in many biological processes. Also, TGF-β can exert pivotal functions in the immune system. It is widely accepted that regulatory T cells (Treg cells) play an important role in the maintenance of the immune homeostasis, but the underlying molecular mechanisms through which they can gain and/or perform suppressive functions in an active way remains to be defined. Though the engagement of TGF-β in the Treg cells has been discounted for a period of time, an emerging body of data has established a close link between Treg cells and TGF-β, as TGF-β has been demonstrated to induce the expression of Foxp3, which acts as a master regulator for the development and function of Treg cells. We will, herein, focus on the crucial role of TGF-β signaling in Treg cell biology and summarize the current studies regarding TGF-β in the generation and function of CD4+CD25+Treg cells both in vivo and in vitro.
| Abbreviations | ||
| APCs | = | antigen presenting cells |
| DCs | = | dendritic cells |
| TGF-β | = | transforming growth factor-beta |
| Treg cells | = | regulatory T cells |
| Foxp3 | = | Forkhead box protein 3 |
| Abbreviations | ||
| APCs | = | antigen presenting cells |
| DCs | = | dendritic cells |
| TGF-β | = | transforming growth factor-beta |
| Treg cells | = | regulatory T cells |
| Foxp3 | = | Forkhead box protein 3 |
Acknowledgements
We appreciate Dr David E. Corbin, Mr Aqeel Javeed and Mr Enyu Rao for their kind suggestions and critical review of our manuscript. This work was supported by grants from National Natural Science Foundation for Distinguished Young Scholars (C03020504, Y.Z.), the National Basic Research Program (973 Program, 2003CB515501, Y.Z.), 100 Quality Vocational Colleges of Chinese Academy of Sciences (2003–85, Y.Z.), and the Scientific Research Foundation for the Returned Overseas Chinese Scholars of State Education Ministry (2005–546, Y.Z.).