MCP-1: Chemoattractant with a role beyond immunity: A review

BackgroundMonocyte Chemoattractant Protein (MCP)-1, a potent monocyte attractant, is a member of the CC chemokine subfamily. MCP-1 exerts its effects through binding to G-protein-coupled receptors on the surface of leukocytes targeted for activation and migration. Role of MCP-1 and its receptor CCR2 in monocyte recruitment during infection or under other inflammatory conditions is well known.MethodA comprehensive literature search was conducted from the websites of the National Library of Medicine (http://www.ncbl.nlm.nih.gov) and Pubmed Central, the US National Library of Medicine's digital archive of life sciences literature (http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/). The data was assessed from books and journals that published relevant articles in this field.ResultRecent and ongoing research indicates the role of MCP-1 in various allergic conditions, immunodeficiency diseases, bone remodelling, and permeability of blood - brain barrier, atherosclerosis, nephropathies and tumors.ConclusionMCP-1 plays an important role in pathogenesis of various disease states and hence MCP-1 inhibition may have beneficial effects in such conditions.