The role of all-trans retinoic acid in the biology of Foxp3＋ regulatory T cells

• Published in: Cellular & molecular immunology 2015-09, Vol.12 (5), p.553-557
• Main Authors: Liu, Zhong-Min, Wang, Kun-Peng, Ma, Jilin, Guo Zheng, Song
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Antibodies; ATRA; Autoimmune diseases; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Cell differentiation; eg细胞; Forkhead Transcription Factors - metabolism; Foxp3 protein; Homeostasis; Humans; Immune system; Immunology; Immunomodulation - drug effects; Immunoregulation; Inflammation; Lymphocyte Subsets - drug effects; Lymphocyte Subsets - immunology; Lymphocytes T; Medical Microbiology; Microbiology; Models, Immunological; Retinoic acid; Review; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory - drug effects; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory - immunology; T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory - metabolism; Thymus; Tretinoin - metabolism; Tretinoin - pharmacology; Vaccine; Vitamin A; 全反式维甲酸; 生物学作用; 生物学机制; 生物学过程; 自身免疫性疾病; 调节性T细胞
• ISSN: 1672-7681; 2042-0226
• DOI: 10.1038/cmi.2014.133

Regulatory T （Treg） cells are necessary for immune system homeostasis and the prevention of autoimmune diseases. Foxp3 is specifically expressed in Treg cells and plays a key role in their differentiation and function. Foxp3＋ Treg cells are consisted of naturally occurring, thymus-derived Treg （nTreg） and peripheral-induced Treg （iTreg） cells that may have different functional characteristics or synergistic roles. AII-trans retinoic acid （atRA）, a vitamin A metabolite, regulates a wide range of biological processes, including cell differentiation and proliferation. Recent studies demonstrated that atRA also regulates the differentiation of T helper （Th） cells and Treg cells. Moreover, atRA also sustains nTreg stability under inflammatory conditions. In this review, we summarize the significant progress of our understanding of the role（s） and mechanisms of atRA in Treg biology.