title: The role of leukotrienes in allergic diseases.
abstract: Leukotrienes (LTs), both LTB4 and the cysteinyl LTs (CysLTs) LTC4, LTD4 and LTE4, are implicated in a wide variety of inflammatory disorders. These lipid mediators are generated from arachidonic acid via multistep enzymatic reactions through which arachidonic acid is liberated from membrane phospholipids through the action of phospholipase A2. LTB4 and CysLTs exert their biological effects by binding to cognate receptors, which belong to the G protein-coupled receptor superfamily. LTB4 is widely considered to be a potent chemoattractant for most subsets of leukocytes, whereas CysLTs are potent bronchoconstrictors that have effects on airway remodeling. LTs play a central role in the pathogenesis of asthma and many other inflammatory diseases. This review will provide an update on the synthesis, biological function, and relevance of LTs to the pathobiology of allergic diseases, and examine the current and future therapeutic prospects of LT modifiers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Juntendo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan; Department of Respiratory Medicine, Ren Ji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, Juntendo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan. Electronic address: yokomizo-tky@umin.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Takehiko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yokomizo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001094:Arachidonate 5-Lipoxygenase / Q000378:metabolism; D003545:Cysteine / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D006967:Hypersensitivity / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D007975:Leukotriene B4 / Q000378:metabolism; D015289:Leukotrienes / Q000378:metabolism*; D053858:Metabolic Networks and Pathways; D018102:Receptors, Leukotriene B4 / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D015289:Leukotrienes; D018102:Receptors, Leukotriene B4; C112381:cysteinyl-leukotriene; D007975:Leukotriene B4; D001094:Arachidonate 5-Lipoxygenase; D003545:Cysteine
keywords: Allergic diseases; CysLTs; LTB4; Leukotrienes; Lipid mediators