Immune and nervous system CXCL12 and CXCR4: parallel roles in patterning and plasticity

Recent data suggest that CXCL12 and CXCR4 have parallel effects in the immune and nervous systems; they regulate cellular movement, proliferation, plasticity and survival of neurons and lymphocytes. Parallel reliance on CXCL12 might support coordinated homeostatic interactions between the nervous and immune systems but might also constitute a unique vulnerability to inflammatory processes, such as HIV-1 infection, that target CXCR4.