Effect of the hepatocyte growth factor on allergic inflammatory cells.

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has multiple activities in a variety of tissues, and is known to prevent the onset and progression of various diseases, but the mechanisms by which HGF exert its beneficial effects remain to be elucidated, although many studies have shown that HGF exerts anti-inflammatory effects in multiple animal models of diseases of the liver, kidney, lung and other organs. Recently, we have reported that HGF also reduces allergic airway inflammation in a murine model of asthma by ovalbumin. Furthermore, HGF directly modulates various functions of eosinophils, which have been shown to play a pivotal role in the development of allergic airway inflammation. HGF influences a number of cell types, and regulates various biological activities, including cytokine production, cell migration, proliferation and survival. This review focuses on the effect of HGF on various inflammatory cells, e.g. eosinophils and dendritic cells, in allergic reactions. (c) 2010 S. Karger AG, Basel.