Mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are a population of evolutionarily conserved T cells, which express an invariant T cell receptor (TCR) and represent a significant subset of innate‐like T cells in humans, yet their role in immunity is still emerging. Unlike conventional αβ T cells, MAIT cells are not restricted by MHC molecules, but instead uniquely recognize microbially derived vitamin metabolites presented by the MHC‐I like molecule MR1. MAIT cells are enriched in mucosal sites and tissues including liver and adipose tissue where they are thought to play an important role in immunosurveillance and immunity against microbial infection. In addition to their putative role in antimicrobial immunity, recent research on MAIT cells, in particular IL‐17 producing MAIT cells, has demonstrated their involvement in numerous chronic inflammatory conditions. In this review, we give an overview of the work to date on the function and subsets of MAIT cells. We also examine the role of IL‐17 producing MAIT cells in chronic inflammatory diseases ranging from autoimmune conditions, metabolic diseases to cancer. Furthermore, we discuss the most recent findings from the clinic that might help deepen our understanding about the biology of MAIT cells.

中文翻译：

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产生白细胞介素17的粘膜相关不变性T细胞-慢性炎症疾病的新兴参与者？

粘膜相关不变T（MAIT）细胞是进化上保守的T细胞群体，它们表达不变T细胞受体（TCR）并代表人类中先天性T细胞的重要子集，但它们在免疫中的作用仍在不断显现。与传统的αβT细胞不同，MAIT细胞不受MHC分子的限制，而是唯一地识别MHC-I分子MR1所呈现的微生物衍生的维生素代谢产物。MAIT细胞富含粘膜部位和组织，包括肝脏和脂肪组织，据认为它们在免疫监测和抵抗微生物感染的免疫中起重要作用。除了其在抗微生物免疫中的推定作用外，最近对MAIT细胞，特别是产生IL-17的MAIT细胞的研究，已证明他们参与了许多慢性炎症性疾病。在这篇综述中，我们概述了迄今为止关于MAIT细胞的功能和子集的工作。我们还研究了IL-17产生的MAIT细胞在慢性炎性疾病（从自身免疫性疾病，代谢性疾病到癌症）中的作用。此外，我们讨论了该诊所的最新发现，这可能有助于加深我们对MAIT细胞生物学的了解。