Final answer:
Immature dendritic cells typically induce immune tolerance by presenting antigens to regulatory T cells to prevent unnecessary immune responses, including autoimmunity, while mature dendritic cells activate the immune response.
Step-by-step explanation:
Immature dendritic cells generally induce immune tolerance, which is the immune system's ability to prevent an unnecessary or harmful immune response to detected foreign substances that are known not to cause disease, or to 'self' antigens. This state of immune tolerance is crucial for avoiding autoimmune diseases where the immune system would erroneously target and attack its own tissues. Immature dendritic cells present harmless antigens to regulatory T (Treg) cells, which are specialized lymphocytes that suppress inflammation and inhibit the secretion of stimulatory immune factors to promote immune tolerance. On the other hand, mature dendritic cells are typically associated with the activation of the immune system, presenting antigens in a way that stimulates an immune response.
The ability to induce tolerance is critical, especially in the mucosa of the upper digestive system due to the exposure to a large variety of foreign substances. Factors like cytokines and interaction with foreign or self-antigens influence the maturation of dendritic cells which in turn affects whether immune tolerance or immune activation is achieved.