A gut feeling for microbes: getting it going between a parasite and its host.
We do not live in a sterile environment, but instead we are intimately associated with our commensal microbiota. Benson et al. (2009) suggest that host sensing of these microbes takes a pivotal role in getting the immune system up and running in response to a major intestinal parasite.
Denkers
Eric Y
EY
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-6401, USA. eyd1@cornell.edu
D000818:Animals; D001419:Bacteria / Q000276:immunology*; D003713:Dendritic Cells / Q000276:immunology*; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000382:microbiology*; D051379:Mice; D008954:Models, Biological; D014122:Toxoplasma / Q000276:immunology*; D014124:Toxoplasmosis, Animal / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology