Center for Immunity, Inflammation and Regenerative Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Virginia, VA, USA.
J Autoimmun. 2011 Mar;36(2):91-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jaut.2011.01.001. Epub 2011 Feb 1.
CD4(+) T-cell (Th) cytokines provide important regulatory and effector functions of T-cells. Among them, IL-2 plays a unique role. IL-2 is required for the generation and maintenance of regulatory T-cells (Treg) to provide lifelong protection from autoimmune disease. Whether IL-2 is also required for autoimmune disease development is less clear as Il2(-/)(-) mice themselves spontaneously develop multi-organ inflammation (MOI). In this communication, we discuss evidence that support the thesis that IL-2 is required for the development of autoimmune response, although some aspects of autoimmune response are not regulated by IL-2. Potential IL-2-dependent mechanisms operating at specific stages of the inflammation process are presented. The interplays among Treg, IL-2, autoimmune response and adaptive immunity are discussed. Overall, available information indicates that IL-2 is a two-faced master regulator of autoimmunity: one to prevent autoimmunity while the other promotes autoimmune response. The latter is an unfortunate consequence of IL-2 function that is used to promote the adaptive immune response against foreign antigens and pathogens.
CD4(+) T 细胞（Th）细胞因子提供了 T 细胞的重要调节和效应功能。其中，IL-2 起着独特的作用。IL-2 是生成和维持调节性 T 细胞（Treg）所必需的，可提供对自身免疫性疾病的终身保护。IL-2 是否也需要用于自身免疫性疾病的发展尚不清楚，因为 Il2(-/)(-) 小鼠本身会自发地发展为多器官炎症（MOI）。在本通讯中，我们讨论了支持以下论点的证据，即 IL-2 是自身免疫反应发展所必需的，尽管自身免疫反应的某些方面不受 IL-2 调节。提出了在炎症过程的特定阶段起作用的潜在的 IL-2 依赖性机制。讨论了 Treg、IL-2、自身免疫反应和适应性免疫之间的相互作用。总的来说，现有信息表明，IL-2 是自身免疫的两面性主调节剂：一方面预防自身免疫，另一方面促进自身免疫反应。后者是 IL-2 功能促进针对外来抗原和病原体的适应性免疫反应的不幸后果。
