Editor's Summary
6 July 2006
Looking for trouble
A growing number of receptors for intracellular pathogens and endogenous danger signals are being discovered. These components of the innate immune system recognize molecular patterns in the nuclear acids, proteins or organelles of invading microorganisms that differ from the patterns seen in the host. A review by Meylan et al. considers recent work on the function of these receptors, notably Nod-like receptors and the antiviral proteins RIG-I and Mda5. The way that 'bad' patterns are distinguished from 'good' remains to be determined. But it is an important area for research since the value of the innate immune system as a drug target is demonstrated by the efficacy of interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL-1ra) in rheumatoid arthritis and other inflammatory disorders.
Review: Intracellular pattern recognition receptors in the host response
Etienne Meylan, Jürg Tschopp & Michael Karin
doi:10.1038/nature04946