title: Invariant natural killer T cells in rheumatic disease: a joint dilemma.
abstract: Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells are an innate T-cell lineage known to recognize a range of endogenously derived and exogenously derived glycolipid antigens. Advances in our understanding of this T-cell subset have enabled researchers to investigate the immunomodulatory activity of iNKT cell ligands in experimental models of diseases such as cancer, allergy and chronic inflammatory joint disease. To a large extent, the ability of iNKT cells to regulate such disease models has been ascribed to their capacity to promote a polarized cytokine environment, which is understood to skew adaptive immune responses. In this Review, we discuss the current understanding of how iNKT-cell polarization is regulated and relate this basic theory to the proposed role for iNKT cells in models of rheumatologic disease.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Molecular Immunology and Inflammation, Department of Rheumatology, Ghent University Hospital, 185 De Pintelaan, Ghent, Belgium.
authors.forename: Michael B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Drennan
authors.forename: Sandrine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Aspeslagh
authors.forename: Dirk
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Elewaut
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D055611:Natural Killer T-Cells / Q000378:metabolism*; D012216:Rheumatic Diseases / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines