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Updated: Jun 12, 2025
Digestion of the Murine Liver for a Flow Cytometric Analysis of Lymphatic Endothelial Cells
Published on: January 7, 2019
The liver as a central "hub" of the immune system: pathophysiological implications
Vincenzo Ronca1,2,3,4,5, Alessio Gerussi6,7, Paul Collins8,9
1Centre for Liver and Gastro Research and National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre, Institute of Immunology and Immunotherapy, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom.
None:
The purpose of this review is to describe the immune function of the liver, guiding the reader from the homeostatic tolerogenic status to the aberrant activation demonstrated in chronic liver disease. An extensive description of the pathways behind the inflammatory modulation of the healthy liver will be provided focusing on the complex immune cell network residing within the liver. The limit of tolerance will be presented in the context of organ transplantation, seizing the limits of homeostatic mechanisms that fail in accepting the graft, progressing eventually toward rejection. The triggers and mechanisms behind chronic activation in metabolic liver conditions and viral hepatitis will be discussed. The last part of the review will be dedicated to one of the greatest paradoxes for a tolerogenic organ, developing autoimmunity. Through the description of the three most common autoimmune liver diseases, the autoimmune reaction against hepatocytes and biliary epithelial cells will be dissected.
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