Dong Y, Benveniste E N
Department of Cell Biology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama 35294-0005, USA.
Glia. 2001 Nov;36(2):180-90. doi: 10.1002/glia.1107.
Astrocytes are the major glial cell within the central nervous system (CNS) and have a number of important physiological properties related to CNS homeostasis. The aspect of astrocyte biology addressed in this review article is the astrocyte as an immunocompetent cell within the brain. The capacity of astrocytes to express class II major histocompatibility complex (MHC) antigens and costimulatory molecules (B7 and CD40) that are critical for antigen presentation and T-cell activation are discussed. The functional role of astrocytes as immune effector cells and how this may influence aspects of inflammation and immune reactivity within the brain follows, emphasizing the involvement of astrocytes in promoting Th2 responses. The ability of astrocytes to produce a wide array of chemokines and cytokines is discussed, with an emphasis on the immunological properties of these mediators. The significance of astrocytic antigen presentation and chemokine/cytokine production to neurological diseases with an immunological component is described.
星形胶质细胞是中枢神经系统（CNS）中的主要神经胶质细胞，具有许多与中枢神经系统稳态相关的重要生理特性。本文综述的星形胶质细胞生物学方面是其作为脑内具有免疫活性的细胞。文中讨论了星形胶质细胞表达对抗原呈递和T细胞激活至关重要的II类主要组织相容性复合体（MHC）抗原和共刺激分子（B7和CD40）的能力。接下来阐述了星形胶质细胞作为免疫效应细胞的功能作用以及这可能如何影响脑内炎症和免疫反应性，重点强调了星形胶质细胞在促进Th2反应中的作用。讨论了星形胶质细胞产生多种趋化因子和细胞因子的能力，重点关注这些介质的免疫特性。描述了星形胶质细胞抗原呈递以及趋化因子/细胞因子产生对具有免疫成分的神经疾病的意义。
