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Regulatory roles of mast cells in immune responses

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Abstract

Mast cells are important immune cells for host defense through activation of innate immunity (via toll-like receptors or complement receptors) and acquired immunity (via FcεRI). Conversely, mast cells also act as effector cells that exacerbate development of allergic or autoimmune disorders. Yet, several lines of evidence show that mast cells act as regulatory cells to suppress certain inflammatory diseases. Here, we review the mechanisms by which mast cells suppress diseases.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology, Japan (B) (K.M.); a grant from Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology, Japan Science and Technology Agency (S.N.) from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology, Japan; a Health Labour Sciences Research Grant from the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Japan (K.M.); and a grant from Banyu Life Science Foundation International (H.M.).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, National Research Institute for Child Health and Development, Tokyo, 157-8535, Japan

    Hideaki Morita, Hirohisa Saito & Kenji Matsumoto

  2. Swiss Institute of Allergy and Asthma Research, University of Zurich, Davos, 7270, Switzerland

    Hideaki Morita

  3. Laboratory of Systems Biology, Center for Experimental Medicine and Systems Biology, The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 108-8639, Japan

    Susumu Nakae

  4. Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology (PRESTO), Japan Science and Technology Agency, Saitama, 332-0012, Japan

    Susumu Nakae

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  1. Hideaki Morita
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  2. Hirohisa Saito
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  4. Susumu Nakae
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Correspondence to Susumu Nakae.

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This article is a contribution to the special issue on Basophils and Mast Cells in Immunity and Inflammation - Guest Editor: Hajime Karasuyama

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Morita, H., Saito, H., Matsumoto, K. et al. Regulatory roles of mast cells in immune responses. Semin Immunopathol 38, 623–629 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00281-016-0566-0

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