Public Health Research Institute (PHRI), Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA; Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Rutgers The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ, USA.
FEBS Lett. 2014 Apr 17;588(8):1389-95. doi: 10.1016/j.febslet.2014.01.030. Epub 2014 Jan 28.
In recent years it has become evident that gap junctions and hemichannels, in concert with extracellular ATP and purinergic receptors, play key roles in several physiological processes and pathological conditions. However, only recently has their importance in infectious diseases been explored, likely because early reports indicated that connexin containing channels were completely inactivated under inflammatory conditions, and therefore no further research was performed. However, recent evidence indicates that several infectious agents take advantage of these communication systems to enhance inflammation and apoptosis, as well as to participate in the infectious cycle of several pathogens. In the current review, we will discuss the role of these channels/receptors in the pathogenesis of several infectious diseases and the possibilities of generating novel therapeutic approaches to reduce or prevent these diseases.
近年来,缝隙连接和半通道与细胞外 ATP 和嘌呤能受体一起,在几种生理过程和病理状况中发挥着关键作用,这一点已经变得很明显。然而,直到最近,它们在传染病中的重要性才被探索出来,这可能是因为早期的报告表明,连接蛋白通道在炎症条件下完全失活,因此没有进一步的研究。然而,最近的证据表明,几种感染因子利用这些通讯系统来增强炎症和细胞凋亡,并参与几种病原体的感染周期。在当前的综述中,我们将讨论这些通道/受体在几种传染病发病机制中的作用,以及产生新的治疗方法来减少或预防这些疾病的可能性。