Mantovani Alberto, Garlanda Cecilia, Doni Andrea, Bottazzi Barbara
Istituto Clinico Humanitas, via Manzoni 56, 20089, Milan, Rozzano, Italy.
J Clin Immunol. 2008 Jan;28(1):1-13. doi: 10.1007/s10875-007-9126-7. Epub 2007 Sep 9.
Pentraxins are a family of multimeric pattern-recognition proteins highly conserved in evolution. Based on the primary structure of the subunit, the pentraxins are divided into two groups: short pentraxins and long pentraxins. C-reactive protein and serum amyloid P-component are classic short pentraxins produced in the liver, whereas the prototype of the long pentraxin family is PTX3. Innate immunity cells and vascular cells produce PTX3 in response to proinflammatory signals and Toll-like receptor engagement. PTX3 interacts with several ligands, including growth factors, extracellular matrix components, and selected pathogens, playing a role in complement activation, facilitating pathogen recognition, and acting as a predecessor of antibodies. In addition, PTX3 is essential in female fertility acting on the assembly of the cumulus oophorus extracellular matrix. Thus, PTX3 is a multifunctional soluble pattern recognition receptor acting as a nonredundant component of the humoral arm of innate immunity and involved in tuning inflammation, in matrix deposition and female fertility. Evidence suggests that PTX3 is a useful new serological marker, rapidly reflecting tissue inflammation and damage under diverse clinical conditions.
五聚素是一类在进化过程中高度保守的多聚体模式识别蛋白家族。根据亚基的一级结构，五聚素可分为两组：短五聚素和长五聚素。C反应蛋白和血清淀粉样P成分是肝脏产生的典型短五聚素，而长五聚素家族的原型是PTX3。固有免疫细胞和血管细胞在促炎信号和Toll样受体激活后产生PTX3。PTX3与多种配体相互作用，包括生长因子、细胞外基质成分和特定病原体，在补体激活、促进病原体识别中发挥作用，并作为抗体的前身。此外，PTX3对雌性生育至关重要，作用于卵丘细胞外基质的组装。因此，PTX3是一种多功能可溶性模式识别受体，作为固有免疫体液臂的非冗余成分，参与调节炎症、基质沉积和雌性生育。有证据表明，PTX3是一种有用的新型血清学标志物，可快速反映不同临床情况下的组织炎症和损伤。
