Chemokines and chemokine receptors: Their role in allergic airway disease

One of the hallmarks of allergic pulmonary disorders is the accumulation of an abnormally large number of leukocytes including eosinophils, neutrophils, lymphocytes, basophils, and macrophages in the lung (1). There is now substantial evidence that eosinophils, under the control of T lymphocytes, are major effector cells in the pathogenesis of asthma. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms by which eosinophils accumulate and are activated in tissues is a fundamental question very relevant to allergic diseases. Another characteristic of allergic inflammation is the activation of leukocytes resulting in the release of biologically active mediators, such as histamine from mast cells and basophils. It is now apparent that chemokines are patent leukocyte chemoattractants, cellular activating factors, histamine releasing factors, and regulators of homeostatic immunity making them particularly important in the pathogenesis of airway inflammation in asthma (2). In this regard, chemokines are attractive new therapeutic targets for the treatment of allergic disease. This article focuses on recently emerging data on the importance of chemokines and their receptors in allergic airway inflammation.