2. Interleukin family and neuroinflammation
Interleukins, as a group of cytokines, were first found to
be expressed in white blood cells as a means of
intercellular signaling[6]. They can be produced
by a variety of cells, such as macrophages, lymphocytes, etc. It is
widely acknowledged that the function of the immune system largely
depends on interleukins[6, 7].
At
present, evidence suggests that there are 10 kinds of interleukins
involved in substance abuse, among which IL-1 and IL-6 are the most
studied(Figure 1). Interleukins are essential regulators of
neuroimmunity and inflammatory responses in the body, as they form a
complex network of inflammatory cytokines[8].
Under various pathological conditions of the central nervous system,
cytokines are considered as crucial mediators of neuroinflammation and
acute and chronic neurodegeneration[9]. For
several years, there has been evidence that cytokine-mediated
neuroinflammation is associated with nerve cell death and adverse
outcomes. Factors of the interleukin family have been identified as
essential mediators of acute
neurodegeneration[10].