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Friendly and dangerous signals: is the tissue in control?

Nature Immunology volume 8, pages 11–13 (2007)Cite this article

In their own defense, tissues send a panoply of signals that initiate immunity and guide the choice of effector class. TH1-TH2 and Treg is far too simple a representation of the breathtaking variety of the resulting responses.

This debate, though slated to be about dangerous and friendly signals, ranged over a number of topics, including the use of words, the use of assays and the complexity of the immune system. Here I will write primarily about the signals I believe to be in charge of immunity, incorporating as best as I can some of those other topics. In some cases what I write below will resonate with what the other authors said. In other cases, we disagree. Because these commentaries are not structured to mimic the debate that occurred, it would be unwieldy to point out each instance of agreement and disagreement, so I leave it to the reader to discern these.

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  1. The Ghost Lab, Laboratory of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, 20892, Maryland, USA

    Polly Matzinger

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  1. Polly Matzinger
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Matzinger, P. Friendly and dangerous signals: is the tissue in control?. Nat Immunol 8, 11–13 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/ni0107-11

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