In the immune system, cell communication is critical for coordinating the body’s defense against pathogens. Immune cells, such as T cells and dendritic cells, use signaling molecules like cytokines to activate, regulate, and direct the immune response, ensuring that it targets harmful invaders effectively while avoiding damage to healthy tissues. So inflammation affects cellular communication by immune system.
| Date | August 14, 2024 |
| Source | Indiana University School of Medicine |
| Summary | Researchers have advanced way considerably in uncovering the mechanisms of cell communication during inflammation. |
If you want to know recent biology news like inflammation affects cellular communication: Smell prepares nematodes and the human gut to combat infections, Mantis Shrimp-Clam Relationship Challenges a Biological Principle, Injury Dressings in First-Aid Kits Can Identify Shark Species After Bite Incidents, Harnessing big data helps scientists home in on new antimicrobials, New geological datings place the first European hominids in the south of the Iberian Peninsula, A New Rule of Biology Focusing on Evolution and Aging.
Watch Here The Yesterday’s News
Cell communication refers to the process by which cells interact with each other through signaling molecules. These interactions are crucial for coordinating various cellular activities, such as growth, immune responses(because inflammation affects cellular communication), and tissue repair.
How inflammation affects cell communication:
During inflammation, cell communication is heightened as immune cells release signaling molecules to recruit other immune cells to the site of injury or infection. This communication is essential for initiating and sustaining the inflammatory response, which helps the body fight off infections and repair damaged tissues. However, dysregulated communication can lead to chronic inflammation and diseases like multiple sclerosis.
STAT4:
STAT4 (Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 4) is a protein that plays a critical role in the immune system. It belongs to the STAT family of transcription factors, which are essential for transmitting signals from cytokines (signaling molecules) and growth factors to the cell nucleus, where they influence gene expression.
Function of STAT4:
STAT4 is primarily involved in the development and function of Th1 cells, a subset of T cells that produce the cytokine interferon-gamma (IFN-γ). Th1 cells are essential for the immune response against intracellular pathogens. STAT4 also influences the production of other cytokines that help coordinate the immune response and inflammation.
How inflammation affects cellular communication in new way
- Researchers at Indiana University School of Medicine have made notable strides in understanding how cells communicate during inflammation. Their five-year study, recently published in PNAS, concentrated on the molecules that facilitate cellular functions during inflammation, especially in the central nervous system, where diseases like multiple sclerosis arise.
- Communication is crucial in any relationship, even at the cellular level where diseases are involved. The molecules enabling cell functions during inflammation act like text messages exchanged between or within cells. Researchers have been investigating which cells receive these messages and how they respond in an inflammatory environment within the central nervous system, leading to diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
- The signaling molecule STAT4, previously thought to mainly function in T cells (a part of the immune system), was discovered by the team to play a critical role in dendritic cells—a specific cell type that reacts to the extracellular signals IL-12 and IL-23.
- Research has shown that STAT4 could be a potential target for treating inflammatory diseases in the central nervous system. By comprehending cellular communication and STAT4’s role, researchers may develop therapies to modify immune responses and ease symptoms of diseases like multiple sclerosis.
- The study’s lead author, Nada Alakhras, PhD, is a recent IU School of Medicine graduate who now works at Eli Lilly and Company. Other contributors include Wenwu Zhang, Nicolas Barros, James Ropa, Raj Priya, and Frank Yang, all from IU, and Anchal Sharma of Eli Lilly and Company.