Shimamura M
Mitsubishi Kagaku Institute of Life Sciences, 11 Minamiooya, Macchida, Tokyo 194-8511, Japan.
Mini Rev Med Chem. 2008 Mar;8(3):285-9. doi: 10.2174/138955708783744119.
Attempts have been made to find specific antigens for a novel NKT cell subset bearing invariant V alpha 19-J alpha 33 TCR alpha chains (V alpha 19 NKT cell). Comprehensive examinations revealed substantial antigenic activity in synthetic alpha-mannosylceramide (ManCer) that was presented by MR1. Structural modification of the sphingosine moiety of alpha-ManCer improved antigenic activity to enhance either Th1 or Th2 -promoting cytokine production by V alpha 19 NKT cells. Such alpha-ManCer analogues will be useful for developing new therapies as immunomodulators.
人们一直在尝试寻找一种新型NKT细胞亚群的特异性抗原，该亚群带有恒定的Vα19-Jα33 TCRα链（Vα19 NKT细胞）。全面检查发现，合成的α-甘露糖神经酰胺（ManCer）具有显著的抗原活性，且由MR1呈递。α-ManCer鞘氨醇部分的结构修饰提高了抗原活性，以增强Vα19 NKT细胞产生促进Th1或Th2的细胞因子。这种α-ManCer类似物作为免疫调节剂，将有助于开发新的治疗方法。
