Chemokines and their role in cardiovascular diseases

Leukocyte infiltration into inflammatory or injured tissues requires a variety of cell-associated and soluble factors that mediate the communications between circulating leukocytes and vascular cells. During the past decade, a superfamily of polypeptide leukocyte chemoattractants known as chemokines has been identified and demonstrated to selectively induce rapid endothelial cell adhesion and transmigration of leukocyte subpopulations. Chemokines are produced by virtually every mammalian somatic cell type in response to inflammatory and immunologic stimuli and have been detected in tissues of numerous disease states characterized by infiltration of distinct leukocyte subsets. Chemokines bind and activate cell surface receptors that belong to the seven transmembrane, G protein-coupled receptor superfamily. Several chemokine receptors have been identified as fusion cofactors for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1). Chemokines have also been shown to play a critical role in atherosclerosis and ischemic reperfusion injury. As chemokine research is a rapidly expanding area, it is the purpose of this brief review to summarize recent progress in the field and to focus on the involvement of chemokines in cardiovascular diseases.