Sheethal H S, Kn Hema, Smitha T, Chauhan Keerti
Departments of Oral and Maxillofacial Pathology, V S Dental College and Hospital, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.
J Oral Maxillofac Pathol. 2018 Jan-Apr;22(1):92-97. doi: 10.4103/jomfp.JOMFP_278_17.
Mast cells (MCs) have been discovered over 130 years ago; their function was almost exclusively linked to allergic affections. At the time being, it is well known that MCs possess a great variety of roles, in both physiologic and pathologic conditions. In the oral tissues, MCs release different pro-inflammatory cytokines and tumor necrosis factor-alpha that promote leukocyte infiltration in various inflammatory states of the oral cavity. These cells play a key role in the inflammatory process and, as a consequence, their number changes in different pathologic conditions of the oral cavity, such as gingivitis and periodontitis. By understanding the role of MCs in the pathogenesis of different inflammatory diseases of the oral cavity, these cells may become therapeutic targets that could possibly improve the prognosis. Therefore, this review summarizes the current understanding of the role of MCs in various inflammatory pulpal, periapical and periodontal pathophysiological conditions.
肥大细胞（MCs）早在130多年前就已被发现；其功能几乎完全与过敏性疾病相关。目前，众所周知，肥大细胞在生理和病理条件下都具有多种作用。在口腔组织中，肥大细胞释放不同的促炎细胞因子和肿瘤坏死因子-α，在口腔的各种炎症状态下促进白细胞浸润。这些细胞在炎症过程中起关键作用，因此，在口腔的不同病理状况（如牙龈炎和牙周炎）中其数量会发生变化。通过了解肥大细胞在口腔不同炎症性疾病发病机制中的作用，这些细胞可能成为有望改善预后的治疗靶点。因此，本综述总结了目前对肥大细胞在各种炎症性牙髓、根尖周和牙周病理生理状况中作用的认识。
