Year: 2019
Type: review
Abstract: Parasitic diseases cause significant morbidity and mortality in the developing and underdeveloped countries. No efficacious vaccines are available against most parasitic diseases and there is a critical need for developing novel vaccine strategies for care. IL-21 is a pleiotropic cytokine whose functions in protection and immunopathology during parasitic diseases have been explored in limited ways. IL-21 and its cognate receptor, IL-21R, are highly expressed in parasitized organs of infected humans as well in murine models of the human parasitic diseases. Prior studies have indicated the ability of the IL-21/IL-21R signaling axis to regulate the effector function (e.g. cytokine production) of T cell subsets by enhancing the expression of T-bet and STAT4 in human T cells, resulting in an augmented production of IFN-γ. Mice deficient for either IL-21 (Il21-/-) or IL-21R (Il21r-/-) showed significantly reduced inflammatory responses following parasitic infections as compared with their WT counterparts. Targeting the IL-21/Il-21R signaling axis may provide a novel approach for the development of new therapeutic agents for the prevention of parasite-induced immunopathology and tissue destruction.
Language: English
Subfield: Parasitology
Field: Immunology and Microbiology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,950
OpenAlex ID: W2992630846