title: Mammalian Toll-like receptors: to immunity and beyond.
abstract: Toll-like receptors (TLRs) constitute an archetypal pattern recognition system. Their sophisticated biology underpins the ability of innate immunity to discriminate between highly diverse microbial pathogens and self. However, the remarkable progress made in describing this biology has also revealed new immunological systems and processes previously hidden to investigators. In particular, TLRs appear to have a fundamental role in the generation of clonal adaptive immune responses, non-infectious disease pathogenesis and even in the maintenance of normal mammalian homeostasis. Although an understanding of TLRs has answered some fundamental questions at the host-pathogen interface, further issues, particularly regarding therapeutic modulation of these receptors, have yet to be resolved.
authors.affiliation: Gram-Positive Molecular Pathogenesis Group, Department of Infectious Diseases, Division of Investigative Science, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, London, UK. p.hopkins@imperial.ac.uk
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Hopkins
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sriskandan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000276:immunology; D002477:Cells / Q000276:immunology; D006706:Homeostasis / Q000276:immunology; D007111:Immunity, Cellular / Q000276:immunology; D007113:Immunity, Innate / Q000276:immunology*; D008024:Ligands; D008322:Mammals / Q000276:immunology*; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000276:immunology*; D018448:Models, Immunological; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000276:immunology*; D017472:Receptors, Interleukin-1 / Q000276:immunology; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000276:immunology; D051193:Toll-Like Receptors
chemical_list: D008024:Ligands; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; D017472:Receptors, Interleukin-1; D051193:Toll-Like Receptors