The role of chemokines and their receptors in dendritic cell biology

Dendritic cells ( DCs) are the chief inducers of adaptive immunity. Their normal life cycle begins with the generation of their precursors in the bone-marrow, followed by their release into the blood stream, continues with their entry into non-lymphoid tissues and commences with steady-state or infection-induced migration into draining lymph nodes. Each of these migration steps is controlled by distinct chemokine-chemokine receptor interactions, facilitated by dynamic changes in chemokine receptor expression. In this review, we describe current knowledge on the role of chemokines and their receptors in the control of DC migratory behavior, as well as other influences on DC biology.