Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Editorial
. 2011 Apr;53(4):1076-9.
doi: 10.1002/hep.24275.

Natural killer cells take two tolls to destruct bile ducts

Bin Gao, Adeline Bertola
Editorial

Natural killer cells take two tolls to destruct bile ducts

Bin Gao et al. Hepatology. 2011 Apr.
No abstract available

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Potential roles of NK cells in the pathogenesis of PBC. (A) Several factors may contribute to NK cell activation, including TLR4 ligand (LPS) and IFN-α produced by TLR3 ligand (polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid [poly I:C])-activated monocytes, and the interaction of NK cell stimula-tory ligands and NKG2D on NK cells. (B) Detrimental roles of NK cells in the pathogenesis of PBC: (b1) activated NK cells kill biliary epithelial cell (BECs) by producing TRAIL, leading to bile duct damage and autoantigen release. Dendritic cells (DCs) present autoantigens to T cells, leading to autoimmunity, and (b2) activated NK cells produce cytokines that enhance functions of antigen-presenting cells and adaptive immunity. (C) Protective effects of NK cells in the pathogenesis of PBC: (c1) activated NK cells produce IL-10 that inhibits adaptive immune response, and (c2) activated NK cells kill autologous DCs and T cells, thereby inhibiting adaptive immune response.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Comment on

References

    1. Wisse E, van't Noordende JM, van der Meulen J, Daems WT. The pit cell: description of a new type of cell occurring in rat liver sinusoids and peripheral blood. Cell Tissue Res. 1976;173:423–435. - PubMed
    1. Kaneda K, Dan C, Wake K. Pit cells as natural killer cells. Biomed Res. 1983;4:567–576.
    1. Kaneda K, Kurioka N, Seki S, Wake K, Yamamoto S. Pit cell-hepatocyte contact in autoimmune hepatitis. HEPATOLOGY. 1984;4:955–958. - PubMed
    1. Schleinitz N, Vely F, Harle JR, Vivier E. Natural killer cells in human autoimmune diseases. Immunology. 2010;131:451–458. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Chuang YH, Lian ZX, Tsuneyama K, Chiang BL, Ansari AA, Coppel RL, Eric Gershwin M. Increased killing activity and decreased cytokine production in NK cells in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis. J Autoimmun. 2006;26:232–240. - PubMed

MeSH terms