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Updated: Feb 11, 2026

Analysis of Human Natural Killer Cell Metabolism
Published on: June 22, 2020
Natural killer cells in liver diseases
Meijuan Zheng1, Haoyu Sun2, Zhigang Tian2,3
1Department of Clinical Laboratory, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230022, China. mjzheng@mail.ustc.edu.cn.
Abstract:
The liver has been characterized as a frontline lymphoid organ with complex immunological features such as liver immunity and liver tolerance. Liver tolerance plays an important role in liver diseases including acute inflammation, chronic infection, autoimmune disease, and tumors. The liver contains a large proportion of natural killer (NK) cells, which exhibit heterogeneity in phenotypic and functional characteristics. NK cell activation, well known for its role in the immune surveillance against tumor and pathogen-infected cells, depends on the balance between numerous activating and inhibitory signals. In addition to the innate direct "killer" functions, NK cell activity contributes to regulate innate and adaptive immunity (helper or regulator). Under the setting of liver diseases, NK cells are of great importance for stimulating or inhibiting immune responses, leading to either immune activation or immune tolerance. Here, we focus on the relationship between NK cell biology, such as their phenotypic features and functional diversity, and liver diseases.
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