Journal
NATURE REVIEWS IMMUNOLOGY
Volume 8, Issue 2, Pages 142-152Publisher
NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
DOI: 10.1038/nri2236
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The respiratory tract has an approximate surface area of 70 m(2) in adult humans, which is in virtually direct contact with the outside environment. It contains a uniquely rich vascular bed containing a large pool of marginated T cells, and harbours a layer of single-cell-thick epithelial tissue through which re- oxygenation of blood must occur uninterrupted for survival. It is therefore not surprising that the respiratory tract is never more than a short step away from disaster. We have only a partial understanding of how immunological homeostasis is maintained in these tissues, but it is becoming clear that the immune system has evolved a range of specific mechanisms to deal with the unique problems encountered in this specialized microenvironment.
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