title: Phagocytic signaling: you can touch, but you can't eat.
abstract: The ability of phagocytes to discriminate between viable/healthy and apoptotic/foreign/abnormal cells is of fundamental importance; a recent study provides new molecular insights into the function of CD47-SIRP alpha signaling in this discrimination.
authors.affiliation: Beirne Carter Center for Immunology Research, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA.
authors.forename: Jason M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Kinchen
authors.forename: Kodi S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Ravichandran
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000943:Antigens, Differentiation / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D051928:CD47 Antigen / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000276:immunology; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D009000:Monocytes / Q000502:physiology; D010586:Phagocytes / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D010587:Phagocytosis; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction
chemical_list: D000943:Antigens, Differentiation; D051928:CD47 Antigen; C497894:CD47 protein, human; D011971:Receptors, Immunologic; C501920:SIRPA protein, human