Csányi Gábor, Singla Bhupesh
Vascular Biology Center, 1460 Laney Walker Blvd., Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA 30912, USA.
Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, 1460 Laney Walker Blvd., Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA 30912, USA.
J Clin Med. 2019 Apr 11;8(4):495. doi: 10.3390/jcm8040495.
The lymphatic network is well known for its role in the maintenance of tissue fluid homeostasis, absorption of dietary lipids, trafficking of immune cells, and adaptive immunity. Aberrant lymphatic function has been linked to lymphedema and immune disorders for a long time. Discovery of lymphatic cell markers, novel insights into developmental and postnatal lymphangiogenesis, development of genetic mouse models, and the introduction of new imaging techniques have improved our understanding of lymphatic function in both health and disease, especially in the last decade. Previous studies linked the lymphatic vasculature to atherosclerosis through regulation of immune responses, reverse cholesterol transport, and inflammation. Despite extensive research, many aspects of the lymphatic circulation in atherosclerosis are still unknown and future studies are required to confirm that arterial lymphangiogenesis truly represents a therapeutic target in patients with cardiovascular disease. In this review article, we provide an overview of factors and mechanisms that regulate lymphangiogenesis, summarize recent findings on the role of lymphatics in macrophage reverse cholesterol transport, immune cell trafficking and pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, and present an overview of pharmacological and genetic strategies to modulate lymphatic vessel density in cardiovascular tissue.
淋巴网络因其在维持组织液稳态、吸收膳食脂质、免疫细胞运输和适应性免疫方面的作用而广为人知。长期以来，异常的淋巴功能一直与淋巴水肿和免疫紊乱有关。淋巴细胞膜标志物的发现、对发育和出生后淋巴管生成的新见解、基因小鼠模型的开发以及新成像技术的引入，都提高了我们对健康和疾病状态下淋巴功能的理解，尤其是在过去十年中。先前的研究通过调节免疫反应、逆向胆固醇转运和炎症，将淋巴管系统与动脉粥样硬化联系起来。尽管进行了广泛的研究，但动脉粥样硬化中淋巴循环的许多方面仍然未知，未来的研究需要证实动脉淋巴管生成确实是心血管疾病患者的一个治疗靶点。在这篇综述文章中，我们概述了调节淋巴管生成的因素和机制，总结了淋巴管在巨噬细胞逆向胆固醇转运、免疫细胞运输和动脉粥样硬化发病机制中的作用的最新发现，并概述了调节心血管组织中淋巴管密度的药理学和遗传学策略。
