Role of Chemokines and Chemokine Receptors in Infectious Diseases and Targeting Strategies

Abstract

Chemokine receptors, a family of G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs), bind in a specific manner to chemokines and elicit cellular responses. Their involvement in inflammatory diseases is predominant. Although the main function of chemokine receptors is enrolment of leukocytes at the site of inflammation, they are also widely explored as drug discovery targets. This is due to the fact that blockage of chemokine receptor may provide novel therapeutic interventions. This chapter discusses the various chemokine receptors, involvement of chemokine receptors in the pathogenesis of various diseases, and receptor-mediated strategies to tackle such afflictions.