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Med. 2006 February 20; 203(2): 269–273. PMCID: PMC2118215 Thymic
stromal lymphopoietin: master switch for allergic inflammation
Yong-Jun Liu Y-J.L. is at Department of Immunology and Center of
Cancer Immunology Research, The University of Texas M.D.
Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX 77030 Thymic stromal
lymphopoietin (TSLP) is an interleukin (IL) 7–like cytokine that
triggers dendritic cell–mediated T helper (Th)2 inflammatory
responses. TSLP is highly expressed by keratinocytes in skin
lesions of patients with atopic dermatitis and is associated
with dendritic cell activation in situ, suggesting that TSLP
might be a master switch for allergic inflammation at the
epithelial cell–dendritic cell interface. New reports now
establish a direct link between TSLP expression and the
pathogenesis of atopic dermatitis and asthma in vivo, and begin
to reveal the molecular