Role of CD1d and iNKT cells in regulating intestinal inflammation

Sung Won Lee; Hyun Jung Park; Luc Van Kaer; Seokmann Hong

doi:10.3389/fimmu.2023.1343718

Role of CD1d and iNKT cells in regulating intestinal inflammation

Front Immunol. 2024 Jan 11:14:1343718. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1343718. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Sung Won Lee^#¹, Hyun Jung Park^#², Luc Van Kaer³, Seokmann Hong²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biomedical Laboratory Science, College of Health and Biomedical Services, Sangji University, Wonju, Republic of Korea.
² Department of Integrative Bioscience and Biotechnology, Institute of Anticancer Medicine Development, Sejong University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
³ Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, United States.

^# Contributed equally.

Abstract

Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells, a subset of unconventional T cells that recognize glycolipid antigens in a CD1d-dependent manner, are crucial in regulating diverse immune responses such as autoimmunity. By engaging with CD1d-expressing non-immune cells (such as intestinal epithelial cells and enterochromaffin cells) and immune cells (such as type 3 innate lymphoid cells, B cells, monocytes and macrophages), iNKT cells contribute to the maintenance of immune homeostasis in the intestine. In this review, we discuss the impact of iNKT cells and CD1d in the regulation of intestinal inflammation, examining both cellular and molecular factors with the potential to influence the functions of iNKT cells in inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

Keywords: CD1d; commensal bacteria; glycolipid antigens; inflammatory bowel diseases; invariant NKT cells; short-chain fatty acids.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Humans
Immunity, Innate
Inflammation
Lymphocytes
Macrophages
Natural Killer T-Cells*

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This work was supported by the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF-2021R1I1A1A01054418 to SL; NRF-2021R1I1A1A01051465 to HP; NRF-2022R1A2C1009590 to SH).