Abstract

Mast cells can promote inflammation and other tissue changes in IgE-associated allergic disorders, as well as in certain innate and adaptive immune responses that are thought to be independent of IgE. However, mast cells can also have anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive functions. Here, we review the evidence that mast cells can have negative, as well as positive, immunomodulatory roles in vivo, and we propose that mast cells can both enhance and later suppress certain features of an immune response.

Author affiliations

1. Stephen J. Galli, Michele Grimbaldeston and Mindy Tsai are at the Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California 94305-5324, USA.
2. M.G. is also at the Department of Human Immunology, Institute of Medical and Veterinary Science/Hanson Institute, Adelaide, South Australia 5000, Australia.

Correspondence to: Stephen J. Galli¹ Email: sgalli@stanford.edu

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