Dendritic cell modulation as a new interventional approach for the treatment of asthma.

Dendritic cells (DCs) have a central role in the immune system, as they control the adaptive immune response and mediate both protective immunity and the maintenance of immune tolerance to self antigens. In this review, we will summarize the recent advances regarding the subsets of DCs and how they regulate the differentiation of naive CD4(+) T cells towards different populations of T helper cells. We will particularly describe the role of DCs in the development and regulation of allergic diseases and asthma, and discuss the capacity of DCs to induce proallergenic Th2 cells versus regulatory T cells. Undoubtedly, tolerogenic DCs play a crucial role in the induction of regulatory cells. Understanding the biology of these cells will help us design novel strategies to cure or prevent allergic diseases and asthma. Copyright 2009 Prous Science, S.A.U. or its licensors. All rights reserved.