Regulation of allergic inflammation by TGF-b superfamily proteins

为了探讨转化生长因子-β超家族蛋白在变态反应性炎症中的作用，我们研究了激活素A和转化生长因子-β-1对小鼠巨噬细胞和B淋巴细胞的影响。巨噬细胞活化后激活素A的产生增加，而转化生长因子-β1的表达减少。激活素A可显著增加B细胞产生Ig G，但不增加Ig A和Ig M的产生，而转化生长因子β1则显著增加Ig A并抑制Ig M的产生。激活素A与转化生长因子-β-1在巨噬细胞和B细胞中的功能部分重叠，但明显不同，表明这两种因子在变态反应性炎症中具有不同的作用。

In order to determine the roles of the TGF-β superfamily proteins in allergic inflammation, we studied the effects of activin A and TGF-β1 in mouse macrophages and B lymphocytes. Production of activin A was increased, while the expression of TGF-β1 was decreased in macrophages upon activation. Pretreatment with activin A significantly increased IgG, but not IgA and IgM, production, while TGF-β1 significantly enhanced IgA and suppressed IgM production in B cells. The functions of activin A partly overlap but are clearly distinct from that of TGF-β1 in macrophages and B cells, indicating that these two factors have distinct functions in allergic inflammation.