Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells have been attracting increasing attention over the last few years as a potent unconventional T cell subset. Three factors largely account for this emerging interest. Firstly, these cells are abundant in humans, both in circulation and especially in some tissues such as the liver. Secondly is the discovery of a ligand that has uncovered their microbial targets, and also allowed for the development of tools to accurately track the cells in both humans and mice. Finally, it appears that the cells not only have a diverse range of functions but also are sensitive to a range of inflammatory triggers that can enhance or even bypass T cell receptor-mediated signals-substantially broadening their likely impact in health and disease. In this review we discuss how MAIT cells display antimicrobial, homeostatic, and amplifier roles in vivo, and how this may lead to protection and potentially pathology.

中文翻译：

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健康和疾病中的 MAIT 细胞。

在过去几年中，黏膜相关不变 T (MAIT) 细胞作为一种有效的非常规 T 细胞亚群受到了越来越多的关注。三个因素在很大程度上解释了这种新兴的兴趣。首先，这些细胞在人体中非常丰富，无论是在循环中，尤其是在肝脏等一些组织中。其次是发现了一种配体，该配体揭示了它们的微生物靶标，并允许开发工具来准确跟踪人类和小鼠的细胞。最后，这些细胞似乎不仅具有多种功能，而且对一系列炎症触发因素敏感，这些触发因素可以增强甚至绕过 T 细胞受体介导的信号——大大扩大了它们对健康和疾病的可能影响。在这篇综述中，我们讨论了 MAIT 细胞如何表现出抗菌、稳态、