Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2014 Apr;21(2):121-8.
doi: 10.1097/MED.0000000000000046.

Scavenger receptor class B type I and immune dysfunctions

Zhong Zheng  1 , Junting Ai, Xiang-An Li
Affiliations
Review

Scavenger receptor class B type I and immune dysfunctions

Zhong Zheng et al. Curr Opin Endocrinol Diabetes Obes. 2014 Apr.

Abstract

Purpose of review: To summarize the recent findings about the roles of scavenger receptor class B type I (SR-BI) in immunity and discuss the underlying mechanisms by which SR-BI prevents immune dysfunctions.

Recent findings: SR-BI is well known as a high-density lipoprotein (HDL) receptor playing key roles in HDL metabolism and in protection against atherosclerosis. Recent studies have indicated that SR-BI is also an essential modulator in immunity. SR-BI deficiency in mice causes immune dysfunctions, including increased atherosclerosis, elevated susceptibility to sepsis, impaired lymphocyte homeostasis, and autoimmune disorders. SR-BI exerts its protective roles through a variety of HDL-dependent and HDL-independent mechanisms. SR-BI is also involved in hepatitis C virus cell entry. A deficiency of SR-BI in humanized mice has been shown to decrease hepatitis C virus infectivity.

Summary: SR-BI regulates immunity via multiple mechanisms and its deficiency causes numerous diseases. A comprehensive understanding of the roles of SR-BI in protection against immune dysfunctions may provide a therapeutic target for intervention against its associated diseases.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of interest

There are no conflicts of interest.

Figures

FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 1.
Major immune phenotypes of SR-BI-deficient mice. SR-BI deficiency leads to immune dysfunctions, including increased atherosclerosis, elevated susceptibility to septic death, and impaired lymphocyte homeostasis. However, absence of SR-BI suppresses HCV infection. HCV, hepatitis C virus; SR-BI, scavenger receptor BI.
FIGURE 2.
FIGURE 2.
Multiple protective roles of SR-BI in sepsis. SR-BI-deficient mice show elevated susceptibility to septic death associated with uncontrolled inflammatory response, delayed LPS clearance, and increased tissue injury. A number of possible mechanisms may contribute to the protective effects of SR-BI in sepsis. First, SR-BI protects against NO-induced cytotoxicity (up left), which prevents tissue damage. Second, adrenal SR-BI mediates the uptake of cholesterol ester from HDL to provide cholesterol for inducible steroid synthesis (up right), which keeps inflammatory responses under control. Third, macrophage SR-BI inhibits LPS-induced inflammatory signaling involving TLR4, JNK, p38, and NF-κB pathways (bottom right), which controls inflammatory cytokine production. Finally, hepatic SR-BI mediates LPS uptake and facilitates LPS clearance (bottom left), which alleviates inflammatory response. HDL, high-density lipoprotein; HCV, hepatitis C virus; LPS, lipopolysaccharide; NO, nitric oxide; SR-BI, scavenger receptor BI.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Krieger M. Scavenger receptor class B type I is a multiligand HDL receptor that influences diverse physiologic systems. J Clin Invest 2001; 108:793–797. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Acton SL, Scherer PE, Lodish HF, Krieger M. Expression cloning of SR-BI, a CD36-related class B scavenger receptor. J Biol Chem 1994; 269:21003–21009. - PubMed
    1. Rigotti A, Acton SL, Krieger M. The class B scavenger receptors SR-BI and CD36 are receptors for anionic phospholipids. J Biol Chem 1995; 270:16221–16224. - PubMed
    1. Acton S, Rigotti A, Landschulz KT, et al. Identification of scavenger receptor SR-BI as a high density lipoprotein receptor. Science 1996; 271:518–520. - PubMed
    1. Kozarsky KF, Donahee MH, Rigotti A, et al. Overexpression of the HDL receptor SR-BI alters plasma HDL and bile cholesterol levels. Nature 1997; 387:414–417. - PubMed

Publication types

MeSH terms

Substances