There are several different kinds of chemokines, each with specific functions and roles in directing immune cell movement. what are common types of chemokines and roles?
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A guide to chemokines and their receptors
Catherine E. Hughes and Robert J. B. Nibbs
FEBS J. 2018 Aug; 285(16): 2944–2971.
Published online 2018 Apr 24. doi: 10.1111/febs.14466
"The chemokines (or chemotactic cytokines) are a large family of small, secreted proteins that signal through cell surface G protein‐coupled heptahelical chemokine receptors. They are best known for their ability to stimulate the migration of cells, most notably white blood cells (leukocytes). Consequently, chemokines play a central role in the development and homeostasis of the immune system, and are involved in all protective or destructive immune and inflammatory responses. Classically viewed as inducers of directed chemotactic migration, it is now clear that chemokines can stimulate a variety of other types of directed and undirected migratory behavior, such as haptotaxis, chemokinesis, and haptokinesis, in addition to inducing cell arrest or adhesion. However, chemokine receptors on leukocytes can do more than just direct migration, and these molecules can also be expressed on, and regulate the biology of, many nonleukocytic cell types. Chemokines are profoundly affected by post‐translational modification, by interaction with the extracellular matrix (ECM), and by binding to heptahelical ‘atypical’ chemokine receptors that regulate chemokine localization and abundance.
Chemokines are defined by their primary amino acid sequence and the arrangement of specific structurally important cysteine residues within the mature protein. These form disulfide bonds that maintain the structure of the chemokine monomer, which consists of a central three stranded β‐sheet, an overlying C‐terminal α‐helix, and a short unstructured N terminus that plays a critical role in receptor activation 1. Variation in the precise configuration of the two cysteines closest to the N terminus allows chemokines to be split into four subfamilies: CC, CXC, CX3C, and XC. In CC chemokines, these cysteines are directly juxtaposed, while CXC chemokines have a single variable amino acid between them. The sole CX3C chemokine has three amino acids between these two cysteines, while XC chemokines, of which there are two forms in humans and one in mice, lack the first and the third cysteines of the motif."
Chemokines can be functionally divided into two groups:
It’s important to note that chemokines play key roles in immunological reactions and in homeostasis of the immune system2. They initiate when some cells of the immune system release chemokines and other cells detect them2. The cells that release chemokines attract other cells to the site in which they are. These cells release chemokines when there is a pathological agent that needs to be fought against so that
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