Contact hypersensitivity (CHS) is a Langerhans cell (LC)-dependent, T cell-mediated cutaneous immune response. CHS reflects a culmination of LC activities in vivo: uptake of epicutaneous antigens, migration into lymph nodes, and presentation of antigens to naïve T cells. Although studies have suggested involvement of the cytokine network in LC migration and CHS initiation, the in vivo function of individual cytokines remains largely unknown. Gene targeting technology has made it possible to study in vivo functions of cytokines through gene-targeted knockout (KO) mice deficient in a given cytokine or its receptor. A variety of cytokine knockouts have been used to assign biological functions to specific cytokines in CHS. These studies have contributed significantly to our understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying CHS.

中文翻译：

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接触性超敏反应研究中的细胞因子敲除。

接触性超敏反应（CHS）是朗格汉斯细胞（LC）依赖性的T细胞介导的皮肤免疫反应。CHS反映了体内LC活性的高潮：表皮抗原的吸收，迁移到淋巴结中以及抗原向幼稚T细胞的呈递。尽管研究表明细胞因子网络参与了LC迁移和CHS的启动，但是单个细胞因子的体内功能仍然未知。基因靶向技术使通过缺乏特定细胞因子或其受体的基因靶向敲除（KO）小鼠研究细胞因子的体内功能成为可能。多种细胞因子敲除已被用于为CHS中的特定细胞因子分配生物学功能。这些研究为我们对CHS潜在分子机制的理解做出了重要贡献。