[Mucosal immune system and mucosal vaccine].

In the recent years, mucosal immune system is recognized as the new world in the area of immunology. The host is continuously exposed to the numerous numbers of environmental antigens via the mucosa and the skin. A total surface area of the mucosa is approximately 200 times larger than that of the skin, and the former surface area contains a large numbers of lymphoid cells (> 10(11)). In order to provide an effective defence for the host by vaccine, it is logical to consider the mucosal immune system. According to the new informations obtained by the modern cellular and molecular immunobiological knowledges and approaches, the concept of the mucosal immune system has been rapidly proceeded to apply for the development of mucosal vaccine. In this report, we have reviewed and discussed the recent progress in the characterization of mucosal immune system and the development of mucosal vaccine.