The Functional Stability of FOXP3 and RORγt in Treg and Th17 and Their Therapeutic Applications

J Ren1, B Li2

  • 1Key Laboratory of Molecular Virology and Immunology, CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Unit of Molecular Immunology, Institut Pasteur of Shanghai, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Universities and Colleges Admissions Service, Shanghai, PR China.

The balance of CD4+CD25+FOXP3+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) and effector T cells plays a key role in maintaining immune homeostasis, while the imbalance of them is related to many inflammatory diseases in both human and mice. Here we discuss about the plasticity of Tregs and Th17 cells, and the related human diseases resulted from the imbalance of them. Further, we will focus on the mechanisms regulating the plasticity between Tregs and Th17 cells and the potential therapeutic strategies by targeting regulators of the expression and activity of FOXP3 and RORγt or regulators of Treg/Th17 balance in autoimmune diseases, allergy, infection, and cancer.