Submitted on February 12, 2008
Accepted on April 11, 2008
REGULATORY IMMUNE CELLS IN KIDNEY DISEASE
Vincent Weng Seng Lee1*, Yuan Min Wang2, Yiping Wang3, Dong Zheng4, Tania Polhill2, Qi Cao5, Huiling Wu6, Ian Alexander7, Stephen Alexander2, and David Harris8
1 Renal Medicine, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; , Australia
2 Centre for Kidney Research, Children's Hospital at Westmead, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia
3 Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Renal Medicine, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
4 Australia; Renal Medicine, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
5 Renal Medicine, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
6 Renal Medicine, Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
7 Gene Therapy Research Unit, Children's Hospital at Westmead, Westmead, New South Wales, Australia
8 Western Clinical School, University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Renal Medicine, Westmead Hospital, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: vincent_lee{at}wmi.usyd.edu.au.
Lymphocytes and macrophages act as effector immune cells in the initiation and progression of renal injury. Recent data have shown that subpopulations of these immune cells (regulatory T lymphocytes and alternately-activated or regulatory macrophages) are potent modulators of tissue injury and repair in renal disease. Recent animal studies examining the therapeutic effect of these cells raise the exciting possibility that strategies targeting these cell types may be effective at treating and preventing kidney disease in humans. This review will describe their biological role in experimental kidney disease and therapeutic potential in clinical nephrology.
