Meta-Biol

• Pathways

In response to receptor ligation, the tyrosine residues in DAP12's immunoreceptor tyrosine-based activation motif (ITAM) are phosphorylated by Src family kinases. These phosphotyrosines form the docking site for the protein tyrosine kinase SYK in myeloid cells and SYK and ZAP70 in NK cells. DAP12-bound SYK autophosphorylates and phosphorylates the scaffolding molecule LAT, recruiting the proximal signaling molecules phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase (PI3K), phospholipase-C gamma (PLC-gamma), GADS (GRB2-related adapter downstream of SHC), SLP76 (SH2 domain-containing leukocyte protein of 76 kDa), GRB2:SOS (Growth factor receptor-bound protein 2:Son of sevenless homolog 1) and VAV. All of these intermediate signalling molecules result in the recruitment and activation of kinases AKT, CBL (Casitas B-lineage lymphoma) and ERK (extracellular signal-regulated kinase), and rearrangement of the actin cytoskeleton (actin polymerization) finally leading to cellular activation. PLC-gamma generates the secondary messengers diacylglycerol (DAG) and inositol-1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP3), leading to activation of protein kinase C (PKC) and calcium mobilization, respectively (Turnbull & Colonna 2007, Klesney-Tait et al. 2006).

Innate immunity encompases the nonspecific part of immunity tha are part of an individual's natural biologic makeup

Humans are exposed to millions of potential pathogens daily, through contact, ingestion, and inhalation. Our ability to avoid infection depends on the adaptive immune system and during the first critical hours and days of exposure to a new pathogen, our innate immune system.