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Dynamic Regulation of NK Cell Responsiveness

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Part of the book series: Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology ((CT MICROBIOLOGY,volume 395))

Abstract

Natural killer (NK) cells deliver cytotoxic granules and immunomodulatory cytokines in response to transformed and virally infected cells. NK cell functions are under the control of a large number of germline-encoded receptors that recognize various ligands on target cells, but NK cells also respond to cytokines in the surrounding environment. The interaction between NK cell receptors and their ligands delivers either inhibitory or activating signals. The cytokine milieu further shapes NK cell responses, either directly or by influencing the way inhibitory or activating signals are perceived by NK cells. In this review, we discuss how NK cell function is controlled by inhibitory receptors and MHC-I molecules, how activating receptors contribute to NK cell education, and finally, how cytokines secreted by the surrounding cells affect NK cell responsiveness. Inputs at these three levels involve different cell types and are seamlessly integrated to form a functional NK cell population.

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Abbreviations

NK:

Natural killer

MHC-I:

MHC class I

CLP:

Common lymphoid precursor

KIR:

Killer inhibitory receptors

ITIM:

Immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motifs

LIR:

Leukocyte immunoglobulin-like receptor

SHP:

SH2 domain phosphatase

SHIP:

SH2 domain-containing inositol 5-phosphatase

TAP:

Transporter associated with antigen processing

β2m:

Β2-microglobulin

NCR:

Natural cytotoxicity receptor

RAG:

Recombinase-activating gene

IFN-γ:

Interferon-γ

LFA-1:

Leukocyte function-associated antigen 1

DC:

Dendritic cell

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank all the members of the Höglund and Kärre laboratories for their support and for the helpful discussions, and we apologize to the many contributors to this field whose work could not been reviewed or cited due to space constraints. Our work is supported by grants from Karolinska Institutet to PH, MHJ, and KK; from the Åke Wiberg foundation, Magnus Bergwall foundation, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, Syskonen Svensson foundation and the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare to MHJ; from the Stockholm City Council (IMTAC thematic center to PH MJH and KK and ALF grant to PH); from the Ragnar Söderberg Foundation to PH; and from the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research, the Swedish Research Council, and the Swedish Cancer Society to KK and PH. AKW, SW and SG are supported by individual KID grants from Karolinska Institutet. NK was supported by an IMTAC grant.

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Correspondence to Petter Höglund .

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© 2015 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

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Kadri, N. et al. (2015). Dynamic Regulation of NK Cell Responsiveness. In: Vivier, E., Di Santo, J., Moretta, A. (eds) Natural Killer Cells. Current Topics in Microbiology and Immunology, vol 395. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/82_2015_485

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