Regulatory immune cells in kidney disease.

Lymphocytes and macrophages act as effector immune cells in the initiation and progression of renal injury. Recent data have shown that subpopulations of these immune cells (regulatory T lymphocytes and alternately-activated or regulatory macrophages) are potent modulators of tissue injury and repair in renal disease. Recent animal studies examining the therapeutic effect of these cells raise the exciting possibility that strategies targeting these cell types may be effective in treating and preventing kidney disease in humans. This review will describe their biological role in experimental kidney disease and therapeutic potential in clinical nephrology.