The interplay between lymphatic vessels and chemokines

Abstract

Chemokines are a family of small protein cytokines that act as chemoattractants to migrating cells, in particular those of the immune system. They are categorized functionally as either homeostatic, constitutively produced by tissues for basal levels of cell migration, or inflammatory, where they are generated in association with a pathological inflammatory response. While the extravasation of leukocytes via blood vessels is a key step in cells entering the tissues, the lymphatic vessels also serve as a conduit for cells that are recruited and localized through chemoattractant gradients. Furthermore, the growth and remodeling of lymphatic vessels in pathologies is influenced by chemokines an..